| Activist investor now chairs H&R Block
Richard Breeden, former Securities and Exchange Commission chairman-turned-activist investor on Tuesday capped a six-month campaign to return H&R Block to its core tax preparation business – and away from mortgage lending – by securing chairmanship of the company. H&R Block said its board of directors had elected Mr Breeden, who replaced Mark Ernst. Alan Bennett, former chief financial officer of Aetna, the insurer, was appointed interim chief executive. In September, Breeden Partners – Mr Breeden's investment vehicle – secured three seats on H&R Block's board in a bid to shift the company from banking and the mortgage business, where it has suffered losses in subprime. Mr Breeden had also argued that the company was losing market share to rival tax preparer Jackson Hewitt and should refocus on tax.
Julius Baer to open new Milan representation focusing on private banking UPDATE
(Updating with more details on new representation, Italian market) ZURICH (Thomson Financial) - Julius Baer Holding AG said it has received regulatory approval to open an advisory office in Milan, Julius Baer Societa d'Intermediazione Mobiliare Spa, focusing on private banking clients. The Swiss bank said its new representation will provide services such as placement of funds, portfolio management services, client advisory and order taking. "The Italian market is growing and offers considerable wealth creation opportunities," a spokeswoman for the bank said. The move will complement Julius Baer's successful asset management business in Italy, she said. andrew.ge.thompson@thomson.com at/slm COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Financial News Limited 2007. All rights reserved.
Banking on what really matters
If Welsh businesses ditched traditional accounting practices in favour of a more direct banker's analysis, they will not only be focusing on the numbers that really matter in their business, but also be able to make better, more strategic decisions says Nick Setchell, Vistage International (UK) IN today's society even the most basic items come packaged with masses of information. If you buy a mobile phone, for example, the booklet accompanying the phone often weighs more than the phone itself. Similarly when running a business, the amount of knowledge and know-how executives, managing directors and CEOs are expected to have mastered and be able to filter through to make effective decisions is incredible. It is not surprising that most managing directors and CEOs, who are expected to have an oversight of the vision and strategy, demonstrate strong leadership and motivation and understand the operations, do not have a strong financial background.
Julius Baer to open new Milan office focused on private banking
ZURICH (Thomson Financial) - Swiss bank Julius Baer Holding AG said it has received approval from the Italian authorities to open a new representative office in Milan, focused on private banking. Julius Baer said the move will complement its successful asset management business in Italy. andrew.ge.thompson@thomson.com at/jfr COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Financial News Limited 2007. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Thomson Financial News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Financial News.
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China strikes at bank queues with cross-bank deposits, withdrawals
Chinese customers can now make deposits and cash withdrawals at different banks, regardless of where they keep their accounts, thanks to a service launched by the central bank on Monday.
The new system for small payments is available at most banks, including state-owned commercial banks, joint-stock commercial banks and city commercial banks.
The service is now only available within the account holder's region of residence, but it will eventually operate nationwide. Both debit cards and account books will be covered by the service.
Previously, only medium-sized and small banks offered such services, and cross-bank deposits and withdrawals were only available from major banks for debit-card transactions via ATMs.
Most banks in Beijing, and those in some provinces including Shandong, Guangdong and Zhejiang, have been ready to offer such services, according to the central bank.
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