Citigroup has appointed James Wolfensohn, former head of the World Bank and current international Middle East envoy, as senior adviser on global strategy to work with international clients.

The liberalising European Commission (EC) of President José Manuel Borroso has said it will propose wide-ranging changes to article 16 of the banking directive next summer to boost EU cross-border consolidation and prevent the creation of national banking champions through protectionism.

With more than 83% of Bulgaria’s banking assets under the control of foreign banks or financial institutions, who has gained from the country’s banking privatisation in the past decade?

Research on Austrian banks measuring the cost of implementing regulation may apply to institutions elsewhere, while Standard & Poor’s forecasts a lull in European cross-border mergers, writes Stephen Timewell.

Marking the first day of trading of its global depository receipts (GDRs), executives from BankMuscat, Oman’s largest bank, attended the opening session at the London Stock Exchange.

BBVA is moving strongly into two new areas, the US and immigrant services in Spain, which it believes may boost its profits substantially in years to come.

Consolidation in the Bosnian banking sector has accelerated further.

Research shows that foreign banks operating in Japan have found the going increasingly tough during the past 12 months while the US prepaid card market goes from strength to strength. Stephen Timewell explains.

New CEO Reto Francioni is just what the doctor ordered for Deutsche Börse. After being led by the abrasive Werner Seifert, who upset shareholders with his attempted takeover of the London Stock Exchange, the soothing tones of Mr Francioni come as a relief.

Merrill Lynch has agreed to acquire US retail brokerage firm Advest Group from wealth manager AXA Financial for $400m.