Opening Bell: 12.3.15
Exclusive: Barclays' boss wants Blythe Masters to run investment bank (Reuters)
New Barclays Plc Chief Executive Jes Staley approached his former JPMorgan colleague Blythe Masters about running the British bank's investment bank division, a person familiar with the matter said on Wednesday. But Masters told Reuters she was fully committed to running her company, Digital Asset Holdings - a startup designed to speed the trading of derivatives by using technology associated with bitcoin. She joined the company as chief executive in March.
Yahoo’s Internet Business Draws Interest (WSJ)
Among the companies that would likely explore a purchase are Verizon Communications Inc. and Barry Diller’s IAC/InterActive Corp., people familiar with the matter say. Others might be interested in pieces of Yahoo, if they become available, including News Corp, owner of The Wall Street Journal, and magazine publisher Time Inc., according to executives familiar with the situation. Private-equity firm TPG Capital has looked at buying media properties within Yahoo, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Janet Yellen Says Economy Is Ripe for Fed Interest Rate Increase (Dealbook)
While insisting the Fed’s policy-making committee would not make a final decision until its meeting Dec. 15 and 16, Ms. Yellen said raising rates would be “a testament, also, to how far our economy has come in recovering from the effects of the financial crisis and the Great Recession.”
E.C.B. Expected to Expand Stimulus, as Questions of Effects Remain (Dealbook)
New official data showed that the region’s dangerously low inflation rate remained at an annual pace of 0.1 percent in November. That was unchanged from October’s reading, and still far below the central bank’s target of just below 2 percent.
Mom Took Daughter Out On Egging Rampage, Police Say (UPI)
Investigators said Jennifer Terry, 44, drove her daughter and several other teens around Weber County on Aug. 20 so they could throw eggs at as many as 20 homes, and cause several thousand dollars in damage, according to KSL.com. Terry was arrested Monday and charged with a Class A misdemeanor. The egg tossers allegedly threw an estimated 15 dozen eggs at various homes and people. The estimated damage includes a $2,343 bill to repair one home’s stucco and a $3,000 bill for damage to a car’s ignition, along broken screens, windows and furniture...Police said Terry confessed to the eggings and said she did it "because of certain familial problems she was having and because she simply did not care,” according to a criminal report obtained by KSL.com.
Wall Street Goes Short on Bond Traders (WSJ)
The numbers confirm a sea change in the $39 trillion U.S. bond market. Since 2011, overall bonds outstanding have risen 11%, according to the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association, while big banks’ revenue from trading bonds, currencies and commodities has declined about 24%, according to research from CLSA. Staff levels at banks also show a shift. The number of bond traders on Wall Street has declined about 17% from 2010 to 2014, according to recruiting firm Options Group.
Some Merrill Brokers Could See Cut in Base Pay (WSJ)
Some Merrill Lynch brokers will see their base pay trimmed by 2% to 8% next year unless they increase the fees and commissions they generate. The cuts are included in 2016 compensation formulas that the Bank of America Corp. brokerage unit presented to its more than 14,000 advisers on Wednesday afternoon, Merrill executives said.
Top RBS trader to be charged with manipulating price of debt securities (NYP)
Deirdre M. Daly, Connecticut’s top federal prosecutor, is building a case against Adam Siegel and RBS, which used to house its bond trading unit in Stamford, for lying to purchasers — such as hedge funds — about how much the bank paid for bundles of debt, two sources familiar with the investigation told The Post.
Canadian police encourage road safety using rap lyrics (UPI)
One Canadian police department's attempt to encourage road safety during the icy winter months turned into a viral trend that wound up spreading across the country. On Nov. 24, Kindersley Royal Canadian Mounted Police in Saskatchewan posted a message to their Facebook page parodying Vanilla Ice's "Ice Ice Baby" to encourage residents to be mindful of icy conditions on local roads. "To the extreme I rock winter tires like a toboggan. Put your seatbelt on so you don't hit your noggin," an excerpt from the post read. The post then went on to encourage drivers to slow down to accommodate the weather conditions. The post quickly incited responses from police departments in Alberta and Prince Albert among others, who created their own parodies of Flo-Rida's "Low" and Jay Z's "99 Problems" respectively.