Keywords: Ally Financial, US Fed, ADB, Bank Of Spain, Banco Santander, Standard Bank, Kabul Bank, Hong Leong Bank, Kasikornbank, ANZ

"The way to minimise losses is to restructure the bank."
Outgoing Bank of England governor Sir Mervyn King, calling for RBS to be split into a good bank and a bad bank.


The following are notes from our Monday morning meeting.

Ally Financial, the sole big bank to fail US Fed stress tests, released a statement claiming the test is fundamentally flawed.

Japan deputy finance minister Takehiko Nakao is currently sole nominee to be Asian Development Bank's next president.

Bank of Spain started proceedings to decide if Banco Santander CEO Alfredo Saenz will be barred from banking.

Sim Tshabalala and Ben Kruger have been appointed co-CEOs of South Africa’s Standard Bank Group, replacing Jacko Maree.

An Afghanistan court sentenced the founders of Kabul Bank to five years’ imprisonment for fraud relating to the bank’s near-collapse in 2010.

There were 331 million credit cards in China as of December 2012, up 16% from 285 million in 2011. Click to read The Asian Banker Databook.

Malaysia’s Hong Leong Bank received approval from Cambodia to establish a wholly-owned, locally incorporated commercial bank.

Thailand’s Kasikornbank named Banthoon Lamsam chairman and appointed Preedee Daochai and Teeranun Srihong co-presidents amidst a bank shake-up.

Former Citigroup CEO Vikram Pandit is in talks with government officials and PE funds to become a co-applicant for a banking licence in India.

Australia’s ANZ will cut about 50 jobs in institutional and international banking.