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Offshore savers are used to banks packing up and leaving sadly its been a common occurrence in recent years.

When a banking operation announces it is closing down, its more important than ever for those savers with the bank to keep their eyes on the ball.

After AIB announced that it is to close its business in the Isle of Man (Other OTC: MAGOF.PK - news) , AIB International, it said it would announce how the closure will take place.

We now have more details of how the wind-up will happen. Although the bank is not due to close finally until the end of next year, AIB International is putting measures into place. This means it is a good idea for the 20,000 savers with the bank to make alternative arrangements sooner rather than later.

This is because AIB International has written to all its customers telling them that from June 1, interest rates on all accounts will be reduced.

And in addition, while AIB International used to automatically reinvest fixed-rate bonds into new bonds of the same length, with effect from June 1 proceeds from any bonds maturing will instead be put into the Instant Saver account.

Currently, Instant Saver pays 2.5pc but this will change from June 1 to a less favourable rate. This means that if you have a fixed rate with AIB International, you should make a note of the maturity date and on that date, move the money elsewhere.

Some savers may still have many months to go before their saving deal ends. But if they wish to move their money before then, AIB International will allow withdrawals now without penalty.

While one bank leaves the market, another that had a possibly uncertain future has reaffirmed its commitment to offshore savers.

National Australia Bank has just announced the details of its review of its UK operations, Clydesdale and Yorkshire banks, which includes its Guernsey offshoot Clydesdale International . While the bank has announced onshore cutbacks, the offshore operation is safe. A spokesman for Clydesdale said: I can confirm there will be no changes to Clydesdale Bank International as part of the strategic review outcome.

See the original post:
Expat rates: as one door shuts, another remains ajar

09 May 2012

A new report from Appleby shows that transaction values for mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in major offshore financial centers rose by 25% in the first quarter of 2012.

The first ever Offshore-i report from Appleby, the worlds largest provider of offshore legal, fiduciary and administration services, looks at M&A activity for the first quarter of 2012, providing sectoral analysis and expert insight on deal types and geographic trends.

The key findings of the report show that offshore deal values in Q1 2012 increased by 25% from the previous quarter's USD23.2bn to USD30.9bn. However, the volume of deals taking place offshore was down 24% on the last quarter of 2011 and was 26% lower than the same period of last year, revealing that corporate transaction activity continues to be depressed.

The number of transactions in the offshore sector in Q1 2012 amounted to 412. However, while deal volumes were lower than the same period a year ago, the report shows that there is still a reasonable amount of activity going on across the offshore world.

The most popular destinations for investors doing deals involving offshore targets are Hong Kong and the Cayman Islands, while the banking, insurance and financial sector continues to dominate offshore activity, well ahead of the next area of interest, wholesaling.

The report finds that most of the deals in the quarter were minority stake transactions rather than full takeovers.

It will be interesting to see if this positive increase in values continues into the rest of 2012, said Peter Bubenzer, Applebys Bermuda-based group chairman. The challenges ahead are manifold, but there are ongoing signs of real buoyancy in Asian and other emerging markets.

The report says offshore transactional markets have been affected by global economic pressures, and in the first quarter, the United States economy faltered amid fears that any recovery may be lacklustre. This impacted transactions in the offshore jurisdictions of Bermuda and the Cayman Islands, which derive the bulk of their business from America. Continuing uncertainty about the Eurozone, and the potential contagion from Greece of the sovereign debt crisis into the Spanish and Italian markets hit deal drivers elsewhere, the report said, while fears about China's ability to maintain high growth rates further dented confidence. Nonetheless, the report reveals that the continuing strength and attractiveness of the Asian markets is driving investors doing deals involving offshore targets, primarily in Hong Kong and the Cayman Islands.

Meanwhile, Mauritius emerged as the offshore economy experiencing the greatest growth in M&A activity, with the number of deals involving targets there jumping from six to 12 between Q1 2011 and Q1 2012.

Read the original post:
Offshore Merger And Acquisition Activity Rises

(Updates prices)

* Spain to demand banks set aside $45 bln-sources

* Disney (NYSE: DIS - news) profit beats expectations

* Macy's falls as outlook disappoints

* Futures off: Dow (NYSE: DPD - news) 72 pts, S&P 14.7 pts, Nasdaq (Nasdaq: ^NDX - news) 27.5 pts

NEW YORK (Frankfurt: A0DKRK - news) , May 9 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures pointed to a sharply lower open on Wednesday as political uncertainty hung over Greece and concerns arose over the frail state of Spanish banks.

Spain will demand banks set aside another $45 billion against loans to builders as it battles to rebuild confidence, sources told Reuters. Huge bank losses have raised fears the country may need an international bailout.

U.S.-listed shares of Banco Santander SA (Amsterdam: SANT.AS - news) dropped 5.5 percent to $6.02 in premarket trading. European shares were off 1.2 percent early Wednesday.

Political gridlock in Greece also dented sentiment. The country moved closer to a second snap election after the head of the biggest party launched a new attack on leftist leader Alexis Tsipras, saying his plans for a new government would push Greece out of the euro zone.

"If Greece doesn't receive bailouts, they'll likely be expelled from the EU, and if that happens all hell could break loose over there," said Jay Feuerstein, chief executive of asset management firm 2100 Xenon Group in Chicago.

More here:
US STOCKS-Futures imply weak open on Europe fears

* Spain to demand banks set aside $45 bln-sources

* Disney (NYSE: DIS - news) profit beats expectations

* Yahoo (NasdaqGS: YHOO - news) director to step down

* Futures off: Dow (NYSE: DPD - news) 86 pts, S&P 12.8 pts, Nasdaq (Nasdaq: ^NDX - news) 23.75 pts

NEW YORK (Frankfurt: A0DKRK - news) , May 9 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures fell on Wednesday, mirroring European shares on concerns over the teetering state of Spanish banks.

* Spain will demand banks set aside another $45 billion against loans to builders as it battles to rebuild confidence, sources told Reuters. Huge bank losses have raised fears the country may need an international bailout.

* U.S.-listed shares of Banco Santander SA (Amsterdam: SANT.AS - news) dropped 5.5 percent to $6.02 in premarket trading.

* The situation in Europe (Chicago Options: ^REURUSD - news) has been a primary driver for Wall Street this week as the corporate earnings season winds down and there are few domestic economic indicators that could influence equities.

* The S&P 500 is down 2.4 percent so far this month while the Dow has fallen for five straight sessions.

* Possible fallout after elections in Greece has also dented sentiment. Leftist leader Alexis Tsipras was to meet the heads of Greece's mainstream parties Wednesday to try to form a coalition government. But the effort was not expected to succeed after he demanded they first agree to tear up the country's EU/IMF (Berlin: MXG1.BE - news) bailout deal.

Read more:
US STOCKS-Spanish bank fears push futures lower

(Updates prices, adds Macy's, analyst comment)

* Spain to demand banks set aside $45 bln-sources

* Disney (NYSE: DIS - news) profit beats expectations

* Yahoo (NasdaqGS: YHOO - news) director to step down

* Futures off: Dow (NYSE: DPD - news) 72 pts, S&P 11.2 pts, Nasdaq (Nasdaq: ^NDX - news) 18.5 pts

NEW YORK (Frankfurt: A0DKRK - news) , May 9 (Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures fell on Wednesday, with investors again taking their cue from Europe (Chicago Options: ^REURUSD - news) as political uncertainty hung over Greece and concerns arose over the frail state of Spanish banks.

Spain will demand banks set aside another $45 billion against loans to builders as it battles to rebuild confidence, sources told Reuters. Huge bank losses have raised fears the country may need an international bailout.

U.S.-listed shares of Banco Santander SA (Amsterdam: SANT.AS - news) dropped 5.5 percent to $6.02 in premarket trading. European shares were off 1 percent early Wednesday.

The gridlock after elections in Greece has also dented sentiment. Leftist leader Alexis Tsipras was to meet the heads of Greece's mainstream parties Wednesday to try to form a coalition government, but the effort was expected to fall flat after he demanded they first agree to tear up the country's EU/IMF (Berlin: MXG1.BE - news) bailout deal.

"If Greece doesn't receive bailouts, they'll likely be expelled from the EU, and if that happens all hell could break loose over there," said Jay Feuerstein, chief executive of asset management firm 2100 Xenon Group in Chicago.

Read more from the original source:
US STOCKS-Futures down again on Europe concerns