BNP Paribas confirmed it had taken control of the Belgium and Luxembourg operations of troubled finance group Fortis, making the Belgian government the largest shareholder in the French bank.
The governments of Belgium and Luxembourg are scrambling to find a solution for the troubled financial group Fortis after the European Commission approved the nationalisation of its Netherlands-based operations by Dutch authorities.
Days after it was approached by US banking giant Citigroup, Wachovia reached a merger deal with Wells Fargo for about $15.1 billion.The deal enables the bank to stay in business without government support, Wachovia officials said.
French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde asked Axel Miller, the former CEO of troubled Dexia bank, to give up his €3.7 billion severance package as a condition to the government bailout of the Franco-Belgian financial institution.
The Irish government has pledged full guarantees on all bank deposits, leading to a rush of funds from UK accounts across the Irish sea. Companies and individuals are unnerved by recent collapses of some of the biggest names in global banking.
Switzerland's giant bank UBS, whose shares have been wildly volatile in recent weeks, offered some good news in the middle of the financial turmoil, announcing it would make "a small profit" in the third quarter.
Toxic assests, credit crunch, junk bonds, etc. Economics professor Gerardo Della Paolera helps us make sense of the financial jargon being bandied around and clarifies the origins of the current crisis.
French Prime Minister Francois Fillon warned that banks are vulnerable given the global financial crisis but assured savers and investors of the state's determination to prevent bankruptcies, in an interview with the economic daily Les Echos.
Although France does not host large, specialised investment banks such as the ones going bankrupt in the US, Paris has announced "new measures" to deal with the ongoing financial turmoil - starting with a rescue package for Dexia.
The British government confirmed the nationalisation of troubled lender Bradford & Bingley, hours after Spain's Santander announced it would buy out the bank's savings business. B&B is the second British bank to be nationalised this year.
