Tag: JPMorgan

Advisory fees of investment bankers drops to 3-year low at $761 million, BFSI News, ET BFSI

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Advisory fees of investment bankers have fallen $761.5 million, the lowest in three years, said a report by Refinitiv, an entity owned by the London Stock Exchange.

During the first nine months of 2021, SBI Caps led the underwriting fees league table with 8.6 percent wallet share or $65.7 million. Morgan Stanley comes next with 6.3 percent with $48.1 million, followed by JPMorgan at 6.2 percent with $47.5 million.

Goldman Sachs stood at fourth with $46.7 million or 6.1 percent of the market pie. Axis Bank got $46.7 million or 6.1 percent share, while ICICI Bank had $40.4 million, 5.3 percent.

BofA Securities got $33.5 million for a 4.4 percent deal share, Kotak Mahindra Bank at $32.8 million, 4.3 percent, Citi at USD 29.1 million, 3.8 per cent, and Avendus Capital stood at the 10th place with $23.3 million for a 3.1 percent deal share.

ICICI Bank leads with $2.5 billion, 11.3 percent of the market share in ECM league table.

Since the deal making process is online, the i-banking fees have dropped as merchant bankers are charging less from their clients. Another reason for the drop is the higher average deal value size of $105 million, which was up 14.4 percent year-on-year with 17 deals topping the $1-billion mark and totalling $38.8 billion, compared with 12 deals above $1 billion worth a total of $30.1 billion on a year-on-year basis.



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HDFC, Axis Bank and Yes Bank lead as corporates return to offices from WFH, BFSI News, ET BFSI

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Financial organisations, including banks, fintech firms and NBFCs, are leading the return to offices from a long bout of work from home due to the pandemic.

HDFC, Axis Bank and Yes Bank are among the top corporates getting ready to reopen their offices as Covid wave ebbs amid the rise in vaccinations.

While some of the corporates have started operations at pre-Covid levels, others are seeking to get more employees to office.

What banks are doing

In line with the directives issued by governments, HDFC has 100% manpower at offices, while expectant mothers, female employees with children below 1 year of age, employees above 65 years of age, employees with co-morbidities and employees coming from any containment zones as defined by the authorities continue to work from home.

Kotak Mahindra Bank expects that 90% of the employees, who are fully vaccinated, will be back to office by November/December.

In branches and other customer-facing roles, it is close to reaching 100% levels.

At Yes Bank, around 40% of employees at our corporate office and other large offices work in hybrid models. The bank has a ‘Work from Anywhere policy’ in place to enable identified employees to work from alternative locations, in addition to working from their designated workplace.

Global scenario

A recent poll of leading U.S. and European banks found that while there would be a sharp decline in employees working five days a week in the office, the largest group still wants to work there four days. This data turns the consensus on its head, since bank managers are planning for more remote working than employees are demanding.

This view emerged this summer from an Infosys poll of 520 managers and employees at top U.S. and European banks. Seventy-one percent said they worked five days a week from the office pre-pandemic. Now, just 27% say they want that same schedule post-pandemic, although few want to be fully remote.

The largest group of bank employees (36%) say they want to work only one day remotely and the rest in the office. But fewer than half of managers (15%) anticipate that employees will seek this schedule. Also, managers consistently overestimated the number of workers who want to be in the office from one to three days a week.

As early as last September, JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon required traders to come back into the office, saying that remote working has slowed decision-making, hampered apprenticeships and reduced spontaneous learning and creativity. Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon called remote working an aberration that was “not a new normal.”



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HDFC, Axis Bank and Yes Bank lead as corporates return to offices from WFH, BFSI News, ET BFSI

Personal Finance

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Financial organisations, including banks, fintech firms and NBFCs, are leading the return to offices from a long bout of work from home due to the pandemic.

HDFC, Axis Bank and Yes Bank are among the top corporates getting ready to reopen their offices as Covid wave ebbs amid the rise in vaccinations.

While some of the corporates have started operations at pre-Covid levels, others are seeking to get more employees to office.

What banks are doing

In line with the directives issued by governments, HDFC has 100% manpower at offices, while expectant mothers, female employees with children below 1 year of age, employees above 65 years of age, employees with co-morbidities and employees coming from any containment zones as defined by the authorities continue to work from home.

Kotak Mahindra Bank expects that 90% of the employees, who are fully vaccinated, will be back to office by November/December.

In branches and other customer-facing roles, it is close to reaching 100% levels.

At Yes Bank, around 40% of employees at our corporate office and other large offices work in hybrid models. The bank has a ‘Work from Anywhere policy’ in place to enable identified employees to work from alternative locations, in addition to working from their designated workplace.

Global scenario

A recent poll of leading U.S. and European banks found that while there would be a sharp decline in employees working five days a week in the office, the largest group still wants to work there four days. This data turns the consensus on its head, since bank managers are planning for more remote working than employees are demanding.

This view emerged this summer from an Infosys poll of 520 managers and employees at top U.S. and European banks. Seventy-one percent said they worked five days a week from the office pre-pandemic. Now, just 27% say they want that same schedule post-pandemic, although few want to be fully remote.

The largest group of bank employees (36%) say they want to work only one day remotely and the rest in the office. But fewer than half of managers (15%) anticipate that employees will seek this schedule. Also, managers consistently overestimated the number of workers who want to be in the office from one to three days a week.

As early as last September, JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon required traders to come back into the office, saying that remote working has slowed decision-making, hampered apprenticeships and reduced spontaneous learning and creativity. Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon called remote working an aberration that was “not a new normal.”



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‘Govts must accept what they don’t do well, like banking’, BFSI News, ET BFSI

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NEW DELHI: JP Morgan’s longest serving CEO Jamie Dimon is a regular visitor to India where his firm has 40,000 employees, most of them doing global work.

Since the pandemic, he is back on the road and has made a couple of trips to Europe and is hoping to visit India in six to nine months. In an online interview with TOI, he shared his assessment of the global economic situation and India. Excerpts:

How do you see the state of the US economy, particularly in light of (US treasury secretary) Janet Yellen’s statements, saying that there is a risk of default?

In the US, the Delta variant is kind of a wet blanket, but the economy is doing quite well. The rest of this year is going to grow something like 5-6%. The table is set rather well, consumers are in very good shape, they have a lot of extra cash, they have paid down debt.

Usually, when debt gets paid down, it’s a sign of a recession. This is more a sign of the pump being primed. The spend today is 20% over what it was pre-Covid. Travel is coming back up, albeit slower. Even if they spend at this level, confidence is going up equally.

Companies are in very good shape. There is a lot of cash and a lot of capability. Capex is starting to go up again, because of the demand. The debt ceiling — we’ve had this before. It’s irresponsible on our part to even get close to it. No one assumes there will be a default. If we did, that would be bad, but I think they’ll get over that.

So you don’t see any risks right now?

There are always risks, but people sometimes overestimate the risk just like sometimes they underestimate them. Geopolitics has always been a risk. The biggest geopolitical risk today is China. But that won’t necessarily derail the economy. And while we are coming out of the Delta variant, if you have another deadly variant, all bets are off on that one. So, hopefully, that won’t happen.

Which are the economies you’re bullish on? How do you look at China the way things are unfolding there?

America is coming out of it…pretty good growth, which can go on for a while. I think Europe is probably six months behind us. For the rest of the world, you really can’t put it in one category because every country is different. But in general, the more developed markets look okay. China’s growth has slowed. But the real issue with China is people got to look a little bit more long-term, and they do a pretty good job managing their economy.

The big fear in the market is inflation and the withdrawal of all the liquidity that is floating around…

It is a legitimate concern. The world has embarked on massive amounts of quantitative easing and fiscal stimulus. They are powerful drugs into the system and drive growth in slightly different ways. We need growth. Growth is the antidote for everything. Inflation is probably a transitory piece. It is currently 3.5% or 4% and as they start to taper, you’ll read about it. It’ll be November, December, January, based upon the Delta variant.

But if that happens, and inflation goes up, long rates will go to 3% or 3.5% over the next 18 months or so, we’ll be fine. Growth is far more important than that inflationary number or bond rates going up. The stock market anticipates healthy growth and earnings.

The bond market may not anticipate that, and that may be because the flows of money and liquidity are so high — it’s like a tsunami coming over them. So, I expect rates to go up. I’ve been wrong on that one before. But we’ll see.

Have your plans for India changed after Covid?

Absolutely not. India has a great long-term growth capability. And how good that growth will be, will be predicated upon the seriousness and detail of your policies and the implementation of policies.

JPMorgan invests for the long run. The bankruptcy code, taxes and reducing bureaucracy & building infrastructure and privatising are critical to growth. I still say that India has great long-term potential. We have 40,000 employees and we have built massive centres.

We just finished one in Hyderabad, which will eventually have 8,000 people. The policy you implement over the next 10 or 20 years will determine the growth rate. A healthy rate of growth is good for all your citizens.

The Indian government has announced a very ambitious asset monetisation and divestment programme that needs about $80 billion. Do you think there’s an absorption capacity for this?

I do. It’s not the money, per se, it’s the regulations. It is the transparency, the ability to buy and sell freely. it is the consistency of law. It makes a lot of sense to sell a lot of assets. Governments should acknowledge the things they don’t do well. Like banking. If you start making loans for political purposes, they will be bad loans. I’m optimistic because your government has generally tried to do the right things, and this is one of them. India could attract a lot more foreign direct investment, if it does a lot of things properly around financial market transparency, international banks, etc.

Bank privatisation is part of the agenda for the first time. How do you see this?

It relates to what rules are imposed upon those banks. Can you operate them properly? Do you have constraints? It’s not just privatisation. Transparency, rule of law, ability to operate governance, accounting, all those various things — if they do it right, you could have very vibrant banks.

People tend to think that’s just good for the wealthy. But it’s really good for the lower-income, jobs and wages go up with healthy economies. And then you can also afford a lot more social programmes. I’m very supportive of ways in raising minimum wages in the US, but if you don’t do it wisely, it will be worse in the long run.

There’s a debate happening here on bitcoins and cryptocurrencies, whether they should be banned or regulated… How do you view this?

I don’t really care about bitcoin. I think people waste too much time and breath on it. But it is going to be regulated. Governments regulate just about everything. I don’t know if it’s an asset. I don’t know if it’s foreign exchange. I don’t know if it’s a currency. I don’t know if it’s the securities laws, but they’re going to do it. And that will constrain it to some extent. But whether it eliminates it, I have no idea and I don’t personally care. I am not a buyer of bitcoin. I think if you borrow money to buy bitcoin, you’re a fool.

That does not mean it can’t go 10 times in price in the next five years. But I don’t care about that. I learned a long time ago figure out what you want, do what you want and be successful yourself. I remember when beanie babies were selling for $2,000 a pop. We all know about tulip bulbs. We all know about internet stocks. Speculation happens in every market around the world, including in communist countries. So, I don’t know why there is a surprise with a lot of speculation, particularly when there’s as much liquidity in the system.



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JPMorgan to acquire majority stake in Volkswagen’s payments business, BFSI News, ET BFSI

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London: JPMorgan has struck a deal to buy a majority stake in German car giant Volkswagen‘s payments business ahead of a planned rollout of in-car technology that allows drivers to automatically pay for fuel or tolls.

The US bank has agreed to buy close to 75% of Volkswagen Payments S.A. for an undisclosed sum, subject to regulatory approvals.

The Luxembourg-based business was founded in 2017 and operates across 32 countries. It offers car purchase and leasing, in-vehicle payments, fuelling and electric vehicle charging and subscription services such as insurance and in-vehicle entertainment.

JPMorgan said it plans to invest in and rebrand the payments business and expand its mobility-focused payments to other industries.

“One of the fastest-growing platforms is the connected car marketplace, whereby the car acts like a wallet for purchasing goods, services or subscriptions,” Shahrokh Moinian, EMEA head of wholesale payments at JPMorgan, told Reuters.

Non-finance companies, including car manufacturers, have stepped up expansion into financial services in recent years.

Volkswagen’s financial services division will retain a 25.1% stake in the payments business, JPMorgan said. The deal is expected to close in the first half of 2022.

Volkswagen Group did not provide a breakdown of earnings for the payments business in its half-year results in July, but said sales at its financial services arm were 22.6 billion euros ($26.77 billion), up 18% on the prior year.



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Biggest U.S. banks smash profit estimates as economy revives, BFSI News, ET BFSI

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By Michelle Price

WASHINGTON – The four largest U.S. consumer banks posted blockbuster second-quarter results this week, after pandemic loan losses failed to materialize and the U.S. economy began roaring back to life.

Wells Fargo & Co, Bank of America Corp, Citigroup Inc and JPMorgan Chase & Co posted a combined $33 billion in profits, buoyed by the release of $9 billion in reserves they had put aside last year to absorb feared pandemic losses.

That was beyond analyst estimates of about $24 billion combined, compared with $6 billion in the year-ago quarter.

Consumer spending has climbed, sometimes beyond pre-pandemic levels, while credit quality has improved and savings and investments have risen, the banks said.

Thanks to extraordinary government stimulus and loan repayment holidays, feared pandemic losses have not materialized. A national vaccination roll-out has allowed also Americans get back to work and to start spending again.

Sizzling capital markets activity has also helped the largest U.S. banks, with Goldman Sachs Group Inc reporting a $5.35 billion profit, more than double its adjusted earnings a year ago.

“The pace of the global recovery is exceeding earlier expectations and with it, consumer and corporate confidence is rising,” Citigroup Chief Executive Officer Jane Fraser said.

That was reflected in a pick-up in consumer lending.

For example, JPMorgan said combined spending on its debit and credit cards rose 22% compared with the same quarter in 2019, when spending patterns were more normal.

Spending on Citi-branded credit cards in the United States jumped 40% from a year earlier, but with so many customers paying off balances its card loans fell 4%.

Citigroup Chief Financial Officer Mark Mason said the bank expects more customers to go back to their pre-pandemic pattern of carrying revolving balances as government stimulus programs wind down later this year.

Wells Fargo posted a 14% gain in credit-card revenue compared with the second quarter of 2020, due to higher point-of-sale volume. Revenue was up slightly on the first quarter, the bank said.

“What we’re seeing is people starting to spend and act more in a way that seems more like it was before the pandemic started and, certainly on the consumer side, spending is up quite a bit, even when you compare it to 2018,” Wells Fargo chief financial officer Mike Santomassimo told reporters.

While loan growth is still tepid, which is usually bad for bank profits, there were signs that demand is creeping back.

Excluding loans related to the U.S. government’s pandemic aid program, loan balances at Bank of America, for example, grew $5.1 billion from the first quarter.

“Deposit growth is strong, and loan levels have begun to grow,” Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan said in a statement.

JPMorgan, the country’s largest lender, on Tuesday reported profits of $11.9 billion compared with $4.7 billion last year.

Citigroup’s second-quarter profit rose to $6.19 billion, up from $1.06 billion last year, while Bank of America’s profit jumped to $8.96 billion from $3.28 billion.

Wells Fargo posted a profit of $6 billion compared with a loss of $3.85 billion last year, which was largely related to special items.

While the results indicate good news for consumers and businesses, low interest rates, weak loan demand and a slowdown in trading will probably weigh on results going forward, analysts said.

The U.S. Federal Reserve is staying the course, with an inflation target of 2% and no plans to tighten monetary policy by, for instance, raising interest rates, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said in prepared remarks for a congressional appearance on Wednesday.

That suggests banks will have to deal with low rates for an extended period of time.

(Reporting by Michelle Price; additional reporting by Noor Zainab Hussain, David Henry and Matt Scuffham; Editing by Lauren Tara LaCapra and Nick Zieminski)



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US IPO market a danger zone for Chinese firms after Beijing crackdown, BFSI News, ET BFSI

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HONG KONG/NEW YORK: China’s stepped-up scrutiny of overseas listings by its companies and a clampdown on ride-hailing giant Didi Global Inc soon after its debut in New York have darkened the outlook for listings in the United States, bankers and investors said.

On Tuesday Beijing said it would strengthen supervision of all Chinese firms listed offshore and tighten rules for cross-border data flows, a sweeping regulatory shift that is also set to weigh on the long-term valuations of the IPO-bound companies, they said.

Bankers and investors expect the pace of activity to slow in the near-term as investors grapple with Beijing’s decision to tighten supervision of firms listed offshore, coming just days after regulators stunned investors by launching a cybersecurity investigation into Didi.

“It suffices to say those Chinese companies already planning to list in the US will have to pause, or even abandon the plans altogether, in the face of mounting uncertainties and confusions,” said Fred Hu, chairman of Primavera Capital Group.

“The US market is off limits, at least for now,” said Hu, whose private equity firm’s portfolio include a number of tech companies that have gone public overseas. “…The stakes are extraordinarily high, for both the tech companies and for China as a country.”

US capital markets have been a lucrative source of funding for Chinese firms in the past decade, especially for technology companies looking to benchmark their valuations against listed peers there and tap an abundant liquidity pool.

A record $12.5 billion has been raised so far in 2021 in 34 offerings from listings of Chinese firms in the US, Refinitiv data shows, well up from the $1.9 billion worth of new listings in 14 deals in the year-ago period.

Analysts say China’s moves to look more closely at firms venturing overseas add a new layer of uncertainty for firms already struggling to navigate escalating tensions between Beijing and Washington over a broad range of issues.

“The message is that for a successful overseas listing, Chinese regulators must be involved, as well as international cooperation with overseas regulatory bodies,” said Louis Lau, California-based Brandes Investment Partners’ director of investments.

“Overseas-listed Chinese companies may have had the mistaken impression that it can ignore Chinese regulators just because they are not listed in China,” Lau, whose company holds Chinese stocks, told Reuters.

The broader regulatory clampdown and Didi’s listing dustup drove the S&P/BNY Mellon China Select ADR Index, which tracks the American depositary receipts of major US-listed Chinese companies, down 3.4% on Tuesday.

‘CLEAR SIGNAL’ Catching many investors, and Didi, off-guard, the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) on Sunday ordered the ride-hailing firm to remove its apps from app stores in China for illegally collecting users’ personal data, less than a week after it made its debut on the New York Stock Exchange following its $4.4 billion initial public offering.

It was the largest Chinese IPO in the US since e-commerce giant Alibaba Group raised $25 billion in 2014.

For investors, the euphoria was shortlived, with Didi’s shares diving nearly a third since its debut on June 30. The stock fell for third consecutive session on Wednesday, ending down 4.6%.

The CAC also announced probes into Kanzhun Ltd’s online recruiting app Zhipin and truck hailing company Full Truck Alliance.

“It’s a clear signal that the Chinese government is not particularly happy that these firms continue to decide to raise capital in the west,” said Jordan Schneider, a technology analyst at research firm Rhodium Group.

The measures come as the US securities regulator in March began rolling out new regulations that could see Chinese companies delisted if they do not comply with US auditing rules.

BOOST FOR HONG KONG

While the latest crackdown has dimmed the outlook for large Chinese IPOs in New York, not all companies are rushing to pull their ongoing offerings just yet.

LinkDoc Technology Ltd, which is described as a Chinese medical data solutions provider, is currently raising up to $211 million in a US IPO and is due to price its shares after the US market closes Thursday.

There has been no change to that time table yet, according to two sources with direct knowledge.

LinkDoc did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Wall Street banks, which have benefited from Chinese firms’ rush to list in New York in recent years, are also expected to take a hit on their fee income in the near-term, according to bankers.

Investment banking fees from Chinese offerings were worth $485.8 million so far in 2021, Refinitiv data shows. Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and JPMorgan are at the top of the league table for deal volume, according to the data.

Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan declined to comment, while Morgan Stanley did not respond.

Some bankers said the latest regulatory clampdown will further boost Hong Kong’s allure as a fundraising venue for Chinese companies looking to avoid the new restrictions for listing in the United States.

Underscoring that optimism, shares in Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd (HKEX) rose as much as 6.2% on Wednesday, and was the second most actively traded stock by turnover.

“Buying is fueled by an expectation that HKEX may become the only IPO center for Chinese firms seeking listing and the main center for raising foreign capital,” said Steven Leung, sales director at brokerage UOB Kay Hian in Hong Kong.



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Global banks announce bumper dividends, but Indian peers face a cap, BFSI News, ET BFSI

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Global wall street banks are hiking dividend payouts after US Federal Reserve gave them go-ahead last week after annual stress test results. However, the Indian bank shareholders have to wait has curbed banks’ dividend-paying ability in the financial year 2020-21 citing the impact of an ongoing second wave of coronavirus.

Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan, Bank of America, Goldman Sachs and Wells Fargo said on Monday they were hiking their capital payouts after the US Federal Reserve gave them a clean bill of health following their annual “stress tests”.

Analysts and investors had expected the country’s largest lenders to start issuing as much as $130 billion in dividends and stock buybacks from next month after the Fed last week ended emergency pandemic-era restrictions on how much capital they could give back to investors.

Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley delivered the biggest surprise to investors, saying it would double its dividend to 70 cents a share in the third quarter of 2021.

The Wall Street giant also said it would increase spending on share repurchases.

Morgan Stanley CEO James Gorman said in the announcement that the bank could return so much capital because of the excess it has accumulated over several years. The action, he said, “reflects a decision to reset our capital base consistent with the needs we have for our transformed business model.”

Bank of America

Bank of America Corp said it will hike its dividend by 17% to 21 cents a share beginning in the third quarter of 2021, and JPMorgan Chase & Co said it will go to $1.00 a share from 90 cents for the third quarter.

Goldman Sachs Group said it planned to increase its common stock dividend to $2 per share from $1.25.

Wells Fargo

Wells Fargo & Co, which has built up capital more rapidly than rivals due in part to a Fed-imposed cap on its balance sheet, said it plans to repurchase $18 billion of stock over the four quarters beginning in September.

The repurchase target amounts to nearly 10% of its stock market value and is line with expectations from analysts.

Wells Fargo, which for years has been trying to move past a series of costly mis-selling scandals, said it was doubling its quarterly dividend to 20 cents a share, consistent with analyst expectations.

“Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, we have built our financial strength … as well as continuing to remediate our legacy issues,” CEO Charlie Scharf said in a statement.

“We will continue to do so as we return a significant amount of capital to our shareholders,” Scharf added.

Citigroup

Citigroup, meanwhile, confirmed analysts’ estimates that a key part of its required capital ratios had increased under the stress test results to 3.0% from 2.5%.

A hike of that size will limit Citigroup’s share buybacks, versus its peers, a report from analyst Vivek Juneja of JPMorgan shows. Juneja expects Citigroup will have the lowest capital return of big banks he covers.

Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser said the bank will continue its “planned capital actions, including common dividends of at least $0.51 per share” and buying back shares in the market.

In India

The Reserve Bank of India has curbed banks’ dividend-paying ability in the financial year 2020-21 citing an ongoing second wave of coronavirus that comes with an economic cost.

“In view of the continuing uncertainty caused by the ongoing second wave of Covid-19 in the country, it is crucial that banks remain resilient and proactively raise and conserve capital as a bulwark against unexpected losses, the Reserve Bank of India said in April.

“Banks may pay dividend on equity shares from the profits for the financial year ended March 31, 2021, subject to the quantum of dividend being not more than fifty percent of the amount determined as per the dividend payout ratio prescribed,” it said.

Private lender HDFC Bank has announced that the board has declared a dividend of Rs 6.50 per share for the year ended 31 March 2021.



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Slips towards $30,000 as strategists flag Bitcoin’s near-term risks, BFSI News, ET BFSI

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By Joanna Ossinger

Strategists are struggling to see a turnaround ahead for Bitcoin, at least for now, as the digital coin hovers around the $30,000 level.

The near-term setup is “challenging,” a JPMorgan Chase & Co. team including Josh Younger and Veronica Mejia Bustamante wrote in a note Friday, while Fundstrat Global Advisors LLC’s David Grider recommended reducing risk or buying some protection.

The JPMorgan team said blockchain data suggests recent cryptocurrency sales were made to cover losses and that “there is likely still an overhang of underwater positions which need to be cleared through the market.”

Bitcoin has halved from a peak near $65,000 in April, hurt by a cryptocurrency clampdown in China, tightening regulatory scrutiny elsewhere and concerns that the servers underpinning the virtual coin consume too much energy. The prospect of reduced emergency stimulus amid the recovery from the pandemic has also emerged as a possible obstacle for the most speculative investments.

Still, the JPMorgan strategists pointed to stability in the Bitcoin futures market as a positive factor, alongside the possibility of increased production costs as China’s crackdown pushes Bitcoin mining abroad. Some researchers argue the marginal production cost plays an important role in Bitcoin prices.

So while the “cryptocurrency market shows signs that it is not yet healthy, it does also appear to be beginning the process of healing,” they wrote.

The largest cryptocurrency fell as much as 6% to $30,296 on Saturday after dropping almost 8% on Friday. Other coins were also under pressure, with Ether dropping more than 5%. Some chart watchers view the $30,000 level as key for Bitcoin, contending a decline below it could open the way to retreat to $20,000.

Grider, lead digital asset strategist at Fundstrat, noted that a large short position has been building again on the crypto exchange Bitfinex — and said the last time there was a similar situation, negative news out of China took prices lower.



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Global banks in Hong Kong push to get staff back to office, BFSI News, ET BFSI

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By Kane Wu and Scott Murdoch

HONG KONG – Global banks are moving faster in Hong Kong to get staff back to office versus in other major centres, given fewer daily COVID-19 cases in the Asian city, and are offering incentives such as onsite vaccinations and days off to encourage inoculation.

Morgan Stanley has more than 70% of its staff back at their desks in the Asian financial hub, while 60%-70% of Credit Suisse employees are in their office，said people who work there. A Citigroup spokesman said 75% of the bank’s staff were in the workplace in Hong Kong.

JPMorgan plans to reach 75% office occupancy in the coming weeks and Bank of America, which until recently had most of its staff working from home, aims to reach full capacity by end-June, their bankers said.

Morgan Stanley, Credit Suisse, JPMorgan and Bank of America declined to comment.

At UBS, up to 60% of its Hong Kong workforce were back in the office, a spokesman told Reuters.

At these levels, occupancy at the Hong Kong offices of many of these banks will be ahead of the rates in New York and London where daily virus cases are still in the hundreds.

Hong Kong has recorded only one daily case on an average in the past week, while 28.5% of its population has received at least one vaccine shot, government data showed.

The banks’ return-to-office push in Hong Kong comes amid the city’s dealmaking boom and hiring frenzy as the Chinese economy recovers from the pandemic.

Returning to the workplace will allow bankers to attend in-person meetings and help secure more deals in a market where mergers and underwriting deals are set to pick up pace.

Most banks are offering two days off for employees who get vaccinated, in line with a government policy, to encourage staff to get inoculated and hasten their return to office.

Some are pushing harder.

Morgan Stanley set up an on-site vaccination operation on June 16 for staff who had not received any shot, according to people who work there. The bank will do it again in three weeks so people can get their second shot, one of the employees said.

Morgan Stanley declined to comment.

Citi will host its first onsite vaccine clinic for local staff on June 22, the spokesman said.

FLEXIBLE POLICY

While banks are looking to bring workers back to office, some are retaining a flexible approach.

An HSBC spokeswoman said the bank’s Hong Kong headquarters was now open for all staff to return but that people could choose between working from office and home.

“I hated working from home,” said a sales banker at HSBC. “I missed being able to chat with my colleagues all the time for leads and gossips. It was not fun at all at home.”

Standard Chartered said two-thirds of its bankers were back in office but that it too remains flexible. Hong Kong is its single largest market.

The bankers Reuters spoke to declined to be named as they were not authorised to speak to the media.

Goldman Sachs is also encouraging all staff members to get vaccinated in the Hong Kong office, a spokesman said.

“Since we reopened the office to all staff on June 7, the number of employees coming to the office every day is at pre-COVID levels, or higher if you consider that travel is way down,” he said.



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