HSBC

Banking giants HSBC and ING on May 14 said they had carried out a landmark blockchain transaction aimed at speeding up payment processes and making them more secure.

Turkey has mandated the Bank of China, HSBC and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Limited (ICBC) to explore bond issuance opportunities in China’s Panda bond market, the Turkish Treasury stated on Feb. 21.

Banking giant HSBC more than doubled pre-tax profit to $17.2 billion in 2017, it announced on Feb. 20, after a recovery drive to streamline its business and slash costs.

Asian and European markets are in turmoil after another significant drop in American stocks. The main US index, the Dow Jones Industrial Average suffered its second 1,000-point loss this week, triggering a worldwide sell-off.

China's Shanghai Composite index closed over 4 percent down, Hong Kong's Hang Seng dipped over 3 percent, and Japanese Nikkei closed over 2 percent lower.

HSBC echoed the concerns of the Bank of Greece, saying a precautionary program or increased monitoring will be necessary for Greece once the country has emerged from eight years in bailout programs.

Greece has appointed Riccardo Lambiris as the new chief executive of its privatization agency, which is trying to sell assets to comply with the terms of the country's bailouts.

HSBC said profits were up in the first half of the year after a turbulent 2016 which saw huge writedowns and restructuring costs as it laid off thousands of staff.

The Asia-focused giant has been on a recovery drive over the past two years, streamlining its operations and exiting unprofitable businesses.

The Greek government is expected to declare the country’s exit from the memoranda as it prepares to issue a 5-year bond upon returning to the markets later on Tuesday. The exact amount of money and the bond rate the Greek state will draw will become public on Tuesday afternoon.

Greece on Monday invited holders of its 4.75 percent outstanding bonds maturing in 2019 to tender them for cash, along with a plan to offer new five-year paper, in its first bid to return to bond markets in three years.

The outlook for London's financial sector has improved since Brexit was triggered, insists the man charged with its policy, even as banks remain set to move some jobs abroad.

Mark Boleat, who spoke on Thursday to AFP after British Prime Minister Theresa May activated the process for Britain's EU exit, nevertheless urged speedy trade talks to minimize disruption.