Philanthropy and bank bashing
It is difficult to imagine what was going through the brain of Goldman Sachs boss Lloyd Blankfein when the bank announced a $500m initiative to help small US businesses
Analysts at Credit Suisse have highlighted ‘potential accounting confusion’ arising from moves to defer bonuses following a decision by the G20 countries to order a global shift in remuneration structures
Focus on simple products pays off
Winners and losers are emerging in Middle East
Case highlights China’s derivatives disputes
Speculation swirls over Wasserstein successor
It is difficult to imagine what was going through the brain of Goldman Sachs boss Lloyd Blankfein when the bank announced a $500m initiative to help small US businesses

Banks: Amid plans for big awards based on resurgent earnings, executives are holding out against charges of defying plans to end the bonus culture many blamed for the credit crisis
The importance of fair value accounting to responsible systemic risk management is hard to overstate, writes Lloyd Blankfein, chief executive of Goldman Sachs
A business at bay: More than two years since the credit crisis set in, investment managers face growing demands to justify what they buy for clients, the myriad fees they levy – and whether their vast industry serves anyone’s interest but its own

Deposits need to be backed by safe assets otherwise the mismatch of risk provides an unjustifiable public subsidy, writes John Kay
If there is one distinct winner to have emerged from the wreckage of the Lehman collapse and the financial turmoil that ensued, it is the investment banking arm of the UK bank
A year after acquiring most of Lehman Brothers’ businesses in Europe, Asia and the Middle East when the Wall Street institution collapsed, Nomura’s biggest challenge lies in playing down those Asian roots
Investment banks should prove to shareholders that the trading business can punch its weight by raising at least some of the capital direct from outside investors – who can help keep bonuses in line, writes Paul Marshall