Financial services

The World Bank's ongoing reform could result in a $50 billion lending boost over the next decade, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has told AFP ahead of stakeholders' meetings this week where key changes are expected to be announced.

A draft law on managing assets confiscated over criminal activity was the last Finance Ministry bill to be voted in the plenary before elections.

The bill was approved in principle by ruling New Democracy votes alone.

Swiss Finance Minister Karin Keller-Sutter said Switzerland's economy would probably have collapsed had Credit Suisse gone bankrupt, in an interview published yesterday.

Keller-Sutter told Le Temps newspaper that the government had acted in the country's best interests in swiftly arranging the takeover of Switzerland's second-biggest bank by its larger domestic rival UBS.

Central banks around the world should keep battling inflation by hiking interest rates despite ongoing concerns about financial stability, the head of the International Monetary Fund has told AFP.

Since last year, central banks have been raising their benchmark lending rates to tackle inflation, which rose to levels not seen for decades in many countries including the United States.

The Swiss attorney general's office says it has opened a probe into the events surrounding embattled bank Credit Suisse, which is to be taken over by rival UBS.

This is a good period for decisions on savings, as the yields time deposits offer today range between 1%-2%, depending on the duration and amount. They have incorporated the rise in interest rates and therefore no more aggressive moves are expected in the near future.

The merger between banks Credit Suisse and UBS could see up to 36,000 jobs being cut across the world, the SonntagsZeitung weekly reported yesterday.

The takeover by UBS of Credit Suisse was hastily arranged by the Swiss government on March 19 to prevent a global financial meltdown, following fears of contagion from the collapse of banks in the United States.

The outlook for the Italian economy is improving but higher interest rates designed to curb inflation could pose a threat to growth, Italy's economy minister said on April 1, sending a warning to the European Central Bank (ECB).

"Fighting inflation with monetary policy is not enough, recession cannot be the price paid for fighting inflation," Giancarlo Giorgetti said.

The Public Employment Agency (DYPA)'s Spiti Mou (My Home) program is set to launch on Monday with the participation of all systemic banks. The program foresees 5,000 loans being taken out by young people and couples aged 25 to 39, with the interest rate limited to a quarter of the normal market rate. If a couple has three or more children, the interest rate will be zero.

The governor of the Central Bank of Cyprus (CBC), Constantinos Herodotou, said on Wednesday there is concern in the markets that problems with some European banks could evolve into something bigger. He added however that the European Central Bank (ECB) was reassuring about the health of the European banking system.