83.5 percent of UBS shareholders agree with the remuneration report. Bank boss Sergio Ermotti once again commented on the takeover and integration of Credit Suisse at the general meeting on Wednesday morning. The merger of the two largest Swiss banks should take place before the end of the third quarter, said Ermotti according to the text of the speech.
UBS CEO Sergio Ermotti already sees “a lot of progress” in the integration of Credit Suisse into UBS. However, significant restructuring measures and optimizations are still needed before the major bank can fully exploit the advantages of the merger, said Ermotti on Wednesday at the general meeting in Basel.
The UBS boss emphasized that the integration was “a marathon, not a sprint.” The year 2024 will be a crucial year for the big bank. The most important priorities for the first half of the year include the merger of the two parent companies and the transfer of the US business into a single intermediate holding company.
Compensation report is accepted with 83.5 percent
The compensation report received approval of 83.5 percent at the meeting. Sergio Ermotti’s remuneration is therefore also approved. In March it was announced that the bank boss had earned 14.4 million francs in the nine months after taking over Credit Suisse.
“Clear sign”: assessment of the SRF business editor
Open box Close box
The clock shows 1:53 when the vote finally takes place. The UBS general meeting in Basel has been running since 10:30 a.m. Before the vote, the votes of the more or less angry shareholders revolved around the takeover of Credit Suisse, the mistakes in the past, sustainability and – above all and again and again – the remuneration of CEO Sergio Ermotti in the amount of 14.4 million francs. The shareholders have been voting on the remuneration report in a consultative manner since the law was amended following the adoption of the rip-off initiative. The result is therefore not binding, but it is a barometer of the mood. And that showed something today. While the annual report was approved with 99 percent and the sustainability report, which was also criticized (also consultative, non-binding), received 93 percent approval, the remuneration report was only around 84 percent. There have already been lower approval ratings at general meetings, but in the case of UBS it is a clear sign when 16 percent of the shareholders reject the remuneration report. Will that have an effect? It is highly doubtful that the top management at UBS will therefore be encouraged to change the culture in its remuneration practices. But 16 percent rejection has symbolic value.
Matthias Pfander
According to Board Chairman Colm Kelleher, Ermotti’s compensation was justified given the turbulent takeover of Credit Suisse. “The Board of Directors is honoring Ermotti’s outstanding performance in the most important year in UBS history. He has fulfilled probably the most difficult task in the industry.”
Legend: Integration is “a marathon, not a sprint,” emphasized UBS boss Sergio Ermotti at the general meeting in Basel. Keystone / GEORGIOS KEFALAS
Shareholders would bear the risks
In his speech, the UBS CEO criticized the argument that UBS had an implicit state guarantee as “factually incorrect”. He referred to UBS’s loss-absorbing capital totaling around $200 billion. “UBS’s risks are borne by shareholders, and by holders of AT1 instruments and loss-absorbing TLAC bonds – not by taxpayers.”
For UBS, this also means that the financing costs are structurally significantly higher than for banks with a state guarantee, he emphasized. The ratings that UBS receives from rating agencies are also lower than those of banks that enjoy an implicit or explicit government guarantee.
According to Kelleher, UBS is not “too big to fail”
UBS President Colm Kelleher has once again spoken out against additional capital requirements for the big bank. According to the text of his speech, the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the major Swiss bank said that he was “seriously concerned” about some of the discussions in connection with additional capital requirements.
“The capital requirements for globally systemically important banks have increased significantly over the past 15 years,” emphasized Kelleher. In his opinion, UBS is also not “too big to fail”. “UBS is one of the best capitalized banks in Europe, with a sustainable business model and a correspondingly low-risk balance sheet,” said the Chairman of the Board of Directors in front of the shareholders.
UBS wants to close 85 bank branches after the takeover
Open box Close box
On March 19, 2023, UBS will take over the major bank Credit Suisse. Since then, the merger has been taking place in partial steps. In March 2024 it became known that UBS wanted to close 85 CS branches. Locations where UBS and CS branches are directly next to each other are affected.
These are the locations Mendrisio in southern Ticino, Delémont in the canton of Jura, Rheinfelden and Frick in the canton of Aargau and Grenchen in Solothurn. UBS says it wants to gain “experience” from these five branches. Between July and September 2024, another “around 20 locations will be consolidated,” according to UBS.
Related
First UBS AGM since CS takeover – compensation report is accepted with almost 84 percent – News
They demanded a million euros for the termination of the electricity supply contract, but the court’s opinion was different
UAB “FishNet” and UAB “Enefit” in 2022. concluded a fixed-price electricity purchase-sale agreement in August, which provided that the agreement could be terminated under the conditions specified in it by paying a termination fee. The procedure for calculating this tax was specified in the conditions of the decision (pricing) of the fixed and exchange price electricity purchase.
UAB “FishNet” initiative from 2023 At the end of June, the contract was terminated, therefore, as UAB “Enefit” stated in the lawsuit, the company that terminated the contract must pay the contract termination fee – about 1.14 million. Eur. UAB “FishNet”, disagreeing with the submitted lawsuit, claimed that it, as a small company, used the right established in the Law on Electricity to terminate the contract unilaterally and free of charge without a termination fee and/or damages.
The panel of judges of the Lithuanian Court of Appeal, which examined the case, noted that the provisions of Directive (EU) 2019/944 on the general rules of the internal electricity market, which provide that European Union member states must ensure that, upon termination of the electricity supply contract, at least household consumers and small companies would not have to pay any supplier change fees, the Law on Electricity and Energy was established not from 2023. on June 1, as stated by Enefit UAB, but from 2021 July 15
Although UAB “FishNet” and UAB “Enefit” in 2022 the concluded electricity purchase and sale agreement provided for a termination fee, but according to the Directive and the Electricity Law implementing it, it could not be applied when terminating the contract, therefore there is no legal basis for awarding EUR 1,143,973 to UAB “Enefit” from UAB “FishNet”, – stated the Court of Appeal.
The ruling of the Court of Appeal of Lithuania in civil case no. e2A-205–407/2024 enters into force on the day of its adoption, but within three months from the day of adoption it can be appealed in the cassation procedure to the Supreme Court of Lithuania.
Ecuador’s country risk falls to 1,141 points, it is the lowest since February 2023
– 2024-04-24 12:30:57
The country risk fell again, this time by 73 points on April 17, in the context of the participation of the Minister of Economy in the spring meetings of the IMF.
This drop in country risk occurred when the Minister of Economy, Juan Carlos Vega, participated in the spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. The meetings have been held in Washington, United States, since April 16.
In addition, Vega has met with representatives of other multilaterals, such as with the president of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), Ilan Goldfajn, and with investors.
What affects country risk
The prolonged drop in country risk began to be recorded since President Daniel Noboa announced the increase in the Value Added Tax (VAT) from 12% to 15%, when he presented, on January 12, the then draft Law to Face the Armed conflict. Then, on March 7, 2024, the IMF confirmed that the Government asked to negotiate a new credit program with the multilateral.
Another factor that usually influences Ecuador’s country risk to decrease is when the price of oil improves, because it is an important source of income for the country.
Currently, the price of WTI oil, which serves as a reference for the barrel of Ecuador, began the day on April 17, 2024 with an increase of 0.63% and stood at USD 83.2 in the morning.
#Ecuadors #country #risk #falls #points #lowest #February
Related posts: