The Global Banker — Banking Industry News &amp; Intelligence

US sanctions Iraq's International Development Bank, which reports deposits above 2.6 trillion dinars

Warsh vows price stability in Bangkok as futures price even odds of October Fed hike

MPS foundation backs Intesa's tender offer for Monte dei Paschi ahead of 29 October vote

ECB authorises UniCredit to lift Commerzbank stake above 30% with no upper limit

APRA and RBNZ find banks resilient in first joint stress test since 2017

Taiwan regulator approves Bank SinoPac merger to form NT$3.19 trillion-asset bank

Mastercard and BVNK launch Global Money Platform for stablecoin and fiat accounts

HKMA unveils ART framework to guide responsible AI adoption by banks

Hernández de Cos wins Sánchez and Feijóo backing for ECB presidency bid

SSM opens on-site inspections of Greek banks' 25 largest corporate borrowers

Bank Muscat's nine-month profit rises 9.2% to OMR209.18 million

UAE central bank unveils five-pillar resilience package for banks

OCC names nine banks, including TD, over political debanking practices

SEB expects 120bps capital buffer hit after Swedish FSA model review

Bank of America misses Q3 profit estimates on weak trading and $1.2bn charge

Nordea pauses share buybacks as ECB model talks point to higher risk exposure

Bank of Uganda raises benchmark rate to 12% at special meeting to counter inflation risks

UBS weighs move from Switzerland as new capital rule would add $16 billion

Bank Muscat's nine-month profit rises 9.2% to OMR209.18 million

Oman's largest lender by assets grew nine-month net profit 9.2% to OMR209.18 million, helped by deposit and lending growth, as its assets rose 10% to OMR16 billion.

Bank of America misses Q3 profit estimates on weak trading and $1.2bn charge

Bank of America missed third-quarter revenue and earnings estimates as a $1.2bn anti-money laundering settlement charge and weaker fixed income trading weighed on results, with remediation costs now in ongoing expenses.

Nordea pauses share buybacks as ECB model talks point to higher risk exposure

Nordea has paused share buybacks until the effect on its risk exposure amount is clarified, and its shares fell 5% in early Helsinki trading after the pause and a weaker-than-expected third-quarter profit.

Standard Chartered appoints Ying Ying Tan as global head of securities services and digital assets

Tan succeeds Margaret Harwood-Jones, who is now CEO, UK & Europe, and takes on the digital assets role at the same time, both effective immediately, the bank said.

Africa Finance Corporation Appointed Nigeria’s Cardoso as New Board Chair

Africa Finance Corporation appointed Central Bank of Nigeria governor Olayemi Cardoso as board chair, succeeding Ireti Samuel-Ogbu as the institution expands infrastructure investment across the continent.

15 October 2026

BNP Paribas hired two managing directors for UK advisory expansion

BNP Paribas hired Govind Shanbogue from Santander and Sandip Dhillon from UBS as managing directors, expanding its senior UK advisory team to six amid rebounding deal activity.

Absa appointed Eric Muriuki to lead pan-African digital growth ventures

Absa appointed former NCBA executive Eric Muriuki to a newly created pan-African growth and ventures role, with a spokesman confirming his mandate on 14 October.

The quarterly review of global banking

TGB Magazine

All issues →

Latest issueIssue 08

Q4 2026: Record profits, on a tightrope

The first half paid banks well for volatility, wealth and lending. The rate cycle has now turned, and the second half will test which of those engines keeps running.

Read the issue

MPS foundation backs Intesa's tender offer for Monte dei Paschi ahead of 29 October vote

Fondazione Mps, once the bank's largest shareholder, will put its backing to its administrative deputation on 23 October, as opponents of MPS's defences already exceed the 34% veto threshold.

ECB authorises UniCredit to lift Commerzbank stake above 30% with no upper limit

UniCredit has ECB clearance to go beyond 30% of Commerzbank and expects to hold about 50% of its voting rights around the end of the year, once remaining regulatory processes are complete.

Taiwan regulator approves Bank SinoPac merger to form NT$3.19 trillion-asset bank

The combined bank is expected to have NT$3.19 trillion in total assets, with Bank SinoPac paying for the deal in new shares to King's Town Bank shareholders and any remainder in cash.

IDBI Bank shares fall 7% as government agrees $5.5 billion stake sale to Fairfax

IDBI Bank shares fell more than 7% after India's government announced the sale of a 60.7% stake to Fairfax, a deal that still needs a Reserve Bank of India fit and proper assessment.

Mastercard and BVNK launch Global Money Platform for stablecoin and fiat accounts

Mastercard and BVNK's single-API platform lets banks embed fiat and stablecoin accounts, cards and payouts under their own brand, with card issuing in 130-plus countries.

BBVA and Santander Completed €150 Million Blockchain Loan for Iberdrola

BBVA and Santander completed a €150 million syndicated loan for Iberdrola using a blockchain platform that records and manages the transaction’s full contractual lifecycle digitally.

15 October 2026

IMF and World Bank launched global blueprint against cyber-enabled financial fraud

The IMF, World Bank and Bank of Thailand launched a fraud-resilience framework for financial services as officials estimated digital scams cost the global economy about $1 trillion annually.

Airtel Money completed London admission as all 2.7 billion shares began trading

Airtel Money’s full share capital entered unconditional London trading on 14 October, completing admission of 2.7 billion shares after conditional dealings began five days earlier.

Basel Committee adopts average-value reporting to curb G-SIB window-dressing

Banks must report G-SIB indicators on average values over the reporting year rather than year-end values by January 2030, while the committee consults on European Banking Union exposures.

Canada proposes conditions for over 400 financial institutions to use new non-financial powers

Proposed regulations would set conditions on non-financial activities for over 400 federally regulated financial institutions, and would require reporting to the Department of Finance.

US sanctions Iraq's International Development Bank, which reports deposits above 2.6 trillion dinars

OFAC accuses the Baghdad lender of giving Iran access to US dollars, while a general licence allows transactions to be wound down until 30 October 2026.

APRA and RBNZ find banks resilient in first joint stress test since 2017

The 2026 Trans-Tasman Stress Test found both banking systems would stay resilient through a severe downturn in both economies, while banks kept lending despite substantial losses.