S&P Global Market Intelligence offers our top picks of banking news stories and more published throughout the week.
Regulation and law
* The U.K. Treasury said it launched an independent investigation into the collapse, and the issues arising from it, of London Capital & Finance Plc. Elizabeth Gloster, a former High Court and Court of Appeal judge, will lead the probe.
* A U.S. court of appeals resurrected a lawsuit against BNP Paribas SA which was filed by 21 alleged victims of a genocidal regime in Sudan. The court overturned a previous dismissal on the grounds that genocide could not be considered an act of state under "universal international consensus."
* Ukraine's JSC CB PRIVATBANK filed a lawsuit against its former owners Ihor Kolomoisky and Gennadiy Bogolyubov in the U.S. over allegedly acquiring assets in the U.S. by misappropriating and laundering proceeds from corporate loans issued by the bank.
* U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said he will direct the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network to probe Deutsche Bank AG to determine whether it is adhering to rules for reporting suspicious financial activities.
* Germany's financial regulator ordered financial technology unicorn N26 GmbH to take steps toward making its anti-money laundering and terrorist financing procedures more robust.
* Former Credit Suisse Group AG banker Detelina Subeva pleaded guilty to a U.S. charge over conspiring to launder money from a scheme that involved $2 billion in loans to Mozambican state-owned firms.
Deals Corner
* Intesa Sanpaolo SpA is planning to offload up to 50% of a €10 billion soured debt portfolio and is engaged in talks with Prelios SpA for a potential sale.
* Euronext NV shareholders voted in favor of a 100% acquisition of Oslo Børs VPS Holding ASA, essentially clearing the last major hurdle for the deal to go through.
In other news
* Deutsche Bank AG shareholders gave their support to supervisory board Chairman Paul Achleitner at the annual general meeting on May 23, with a 90.25% majority voting down a proposal to dismiss him.
* Julius Bär Gruppe AG's assets under management hit record highs when they reached CHF427 billion at the end of April — a 12% year-to-date increase.
* British Prime Minister Theresa May has decided to step down as leader of the Conservative party, effective June 7. The move came after the U.K. government postponed publication of its new Brexit legislation following a backlash against the concessions made by May.
* Deutsche Börse AG is on the hunt for deals to grow its business but is not looking for a mega-tie-up after its plan to merge with London Stock Exchange Group PLC failed when it was blocked by the European Commission over competition concerns.
* Luxembourg-based KBL European Private Bankers SA appointed Jürg Zeltner, a former head of UBS Wealth Management AG, as group CEO and member of the board of directors.
* German unicorn TransferWise Ltd. became Europe's most valuable financial technology firm after more than doubling its valuation to $3.5 billion following a $292 million secondary funding round led by international capital investors.
Featured during the week on S&P Global Market Intelligence
Ex-cons game UK corporate registration system, enabling fraud, money laundering: Research by a British fintech suggests that 1 in 8 disqualified directors are still active on the Companies House register, one of the most open in the world, undermining efforts by financial institutions to weed out money launderers and fraudsters.
Deutsche needs more 'far-reaching' changes, says CEO, as shares fall again: The German lender's turnaround may require "tough cutbacks" in its investment bank, Christian Sewing told the annual general meeting May 23, while pressure mounts on Chairman Paul Achleitner.
BNP Paribas seeks to grow in Germany, but not a candidate for Commerzbank deal: BNP Paribas' revenues in Germany are growing on faster than overall group revenues, and the bank does not need to make an acquisition to strengthen its position there, executives said.