Articles by Ross Kerber and Simon Jessop

American Companies Facing Pressure to Reveal Data on Diversity of Employees

American companies are coming under increasing pressure from investors to publicly disclose information about diversity among employees in the wake of nationwide protests against racial discrimination. Many executives have pledged to champion equality in response to the Black Lives Matter …

Insurers Zurich and Chubb Raise Cover for Canada Oil Sands Pipeline: Filings

Major insurers Zurich and Chubb increased their insurance cover for a Canadian oil sands pipeline over the last year, Canadian regulatory filings show. The Trans Mountain pipeline, which ships types of crude oil and refined products to British Columbia from …

Insurers Say Forced Payouts for Excluded Virus Losses Risk Destabilizing Industry

World insurers told governments on Monday that making them pay out on losses suffered due to the coronavirus that were not covered by policies risked destabilizing the insurance industry. With the global economy hammered by measures to halt the spread …

After Australia’s 2019 Floods, Insurers Begin to Bail, Banks Keep Lending

Only a year after losing their homes to floods in parts of Australia’s north eastern coast of Queensland, people are moving into new houses built on or near the same plots. But while banks have been only too willing to …

European Investors Urge Big-Four Auditors to Take Action on Climate Risks

European investors managing assets worth more than 1 trillion pounds ($1.28 trillion) are pressing top auditors to take urgent action on climate-related risks, warning that failure to do so could do more damage than the financial crisis. The case for …

London Litigation Funder Burford Alleges Share Manipulation in Attack on Its Accounts

London-listed litigation funder Burford Capital said it has found evidence of suspect trading patterns in its shares around the time short-seller Muddy Waters issued a report challenging the company’s accounts last week. Burford said an investigation by the fund and …

Prudential to Complete Split of Insurance, Asset Fund by Year’s End

Britain’s biggest insurer Prudential will complete a planned break-up of the company by the end of the year, with its UK-focused fund and insurance business set to list as M&G Plc. The Asia and U.S.-focused rump of the company will …

Aviva Gets Court Approval to Move Assets to Ireland as Part of Wider Brexit Wave

England’s High Court on Tuesday gave Aviva, Britain’s second largest insurer, approval to transfer around 9 billion pounds ($11.69 billion) in assets to a new Irish company just before the starting gun is fired on Brexit. The move, timed for …

UK’s Financial Services Industry Still Unscathed from Brexit Uncertainty: Reuters

Britain’s financial services industry has emerged largely unscathed so far from the build-up to Brexit, with about 2,000 roles expected to have moved or been created overseas even as the risk of a disorderly exit grows, a new Reuters survey …

Danske Bank’s Money Laundering Could Implicate Other Banks: Whistleblower Lawyer

Danske Bank’s 200 billion euro ($225 billion) money laundering scandal might be the “tip of the iceberg” and investigators should examine whether major Western banks played a role, a lawyer for the whistleblower said. Stephen Kohn, a partner at U.S. …