Mel Rowing
2014-05-08 18:45:49 UTC
"
At heart the Pfizer/AstraZeneca furore is about the feared loss of
thousands of high-paying British jobs. Allow the Pfizer deal to go
through, so the argument goes, and a predatory American “asset-stripper”
will be given free reign to do untold damage to the country’s
pharmaceutical research capabilities.
Whether these fears are justified only time will tell, but in the
meantime Barclays has not made some theoretical threat to cut thousands
of high-paying British jobs, it is actually in the process of cutting
several thousand finance professionals."
[...]
"But investment banking is arguably just as important to the economy as
pharmaceuticals, and in terms of tax revenues probably more so. But the
British authorities screaming about the loss of AstraZeneca, an
Anglo-Swedish company run by a Frenchman and chaired by a Finn, appear
to be sanguine about the closure of much of Barcap and the loss of
several thousand top-rate taxpayers.
Barclays will continue to operate an investment bank, but history shows
few, if any, examples of a major bank downsizing to success in an
industry where the only companies that make real money have attained
what analysts of the sector call “flow monster” status."
[...]
"Having a big investment bank headquartered and run out of London was a
major calling card for London’s status as a global financial centre. The
admission by the UK bank that it has had to withdraw from large parts of
the market is a sign of just how far the British regulatory pendulum has
swung against wholesale banking.
AstraZeneca may or may not be bought by Pfizer and Pfizer may or may not
end up culling UK jobs, but today with absolute certainty we can say
that a major chapter in the history of the City came to an end and
Barclays and Britain may ultimately be poorer for it."
http://tinyurl.com/k4mv53d
Vince must tonight be revelling in smug delight. He and his Lib Dem pack
have been a walking disaster.
At heart the Pfizer/AstraZeneca furore is about the feared loss of
thousands of high-paying British jobs. Allow the Pfizer deal to go
through, so the argument goes, and a predatory American “asset-stripper”
will be given free reign to do untold damage to the country’s
pharmaceutical research capabilities.
Whether these fears are justified only time will tell, but in the
meantime Barclays has not made some theoretical threat to cut thousands
of high-paying British jobs, it is actually in the process of cutting
several thousand finance professionals."
[...]
"But investment banking is arguably just as important to the economy as
pharmaceuticals, and in terms of tax revenues probably more so. But the
British authorities screaming about the loss of AstraZeneca, an
Anglo-Swedish company run by a Frenchman and chaired by a Finn, appear
to be sanguine about the closure of much of Barcap and the loss of
several thousand top-rate taxpayers.
Barclays will continue to operate an investment bank, but history shows
few, if any, examples of a major bank downsizing to success in an
industry where the only companies that make real money have attained
what analysts of the sector call “flow monster” status."
[...]
"Having a big investment bank headquartered and run out of London was a
major calling card for London’s status as a global financial centre. The
admission by the UK bank that it has had to withdraw from large parts of
the market is a sign of just how far the British regulatory pendulum has
swung against wholesale banking.
AstraZeneca may or may not be bought by Pfizer and Pfizer may or may not
end up culling UK jobs, but today with absolute certainty we can say
that a major chapter in the history of the City came to an end and
Barclays and Britain may ultimately be poorer for it."
http://tinyurl.com/k4mv53d
Vince must tonight be revelling in smug delight. He and his Lib Dem pack
have been a walking disaster.