I'm probably not much younger than Archytas.... I may be older....."Hangout".... I remember the term from my youth in the sixties/seventies.....I take it you mean a face to face meeting.... kind of hard for me.... I rarely get to London....I may have been there once at an airport awaiting a connecting flight.... and then I was still a kid.... in the sixties (like I said)....besides, personally, I am not much of a social person, myself.... Archytas (as a British person).... is probably much more "gregarious"...(HAR).... good for him...
"London Whale".... what is (was) it? I heard about it yesterday in the news... some sort of financial scandal involving J.P. Morgan Chase and Jamie Dimon http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2013/03/15/jpmorgan-executives-face-withering-questions-at-senate-hearing/ http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-03-15/jpmorgan-pay-fueled-risk-amid-london-whale-loss-report.html On Tuesday, March 5, 2013 12:54:32 PM UTC-5, nominal9 wrote: > > What say you?.... is this good news or bad? > > I ask... where are the "banksters" going to go????...... China? > > Now... If only the U.S. would do the same...... > > Back to the future... Glass-Steagall PLUS, I say > > http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/03/05/us-eu-bonus-idUSBRE9240EB20130305 > Isolated Britain fails to avert EU bank bonus cap > > <http://www.reuters.com/subjects/investing-simplified> > [image: Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne leaves > Downing Street in London, December 4, 2012. REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth] > > By John O'Donnell and Robin Emmott > > BRUSSELS | Tue Mar 5, 2013 11:16am EST > > (Reuters) - Britain was left isolated in Europe on Tuesday after it failed > to secure backing to water down new EU rules limiting bankers' bonuses, a > measure that could threaten London's dominance as a financial centre. > > The rules, which would limit bankers' bonuses to the equivalent of their > salary, or two times their salary if shareholders agree, are set to be > introduced next year and would represent the toughest bonus regime anywhere > in the world. > > They threaten Britain's financial industry the most, raising the risk that > some > banks<http://www.reuters.com/sectors/industries/overview?industryCode=128&lc=int_mb_1001>and > their top bankers could relocate to other financial centers outside the > European Union. > > Britain's finance <http://www.reuters.com/finance> minister, George > Osborne, appealed to EU ministers to change the rules at a meeting in > Brussels, arguing that the proposed cap would have a "perverse" effect. > > "It will push salaries up, it will make it more difficult to claw back > bankers' bonuses when things go wrong, it will make it more difficult to > ensure that the banks and the bankers pay when there are mistakes, rather > than the taxpayer," said Osborne in a part of the meeting that was > broadcast. > > But none of the other 26 EU member states was willing to stand with him, > and it looks very unlikely that any significant changes to the rules will > be made. Since the rules do not require unanimous backing, Britain has no > veto over the proposals. > > "The space for further negotiation is quite narrow," said Michael Noonan, > the finance minister of Ireland <http://www.reuters.com/places/ireland>, > which as the current holder of the EU's rotating six-month presidency > negotiated the deal with the European Parliament. > > Osborne's inability to fend off the reform, the first of its kind > globally, underscores Britain's waning influence in the EU and is also > likely to fuel deepening euroscepticism in Britain. > > "Britain has done a lot to isolate itself from the rest of the European > Union," said Philip Whyte of the Centre for European Reform, a thinktank. > "It isn't exercising very much influence in European debates, pretty much > across the board." > > Officials indicated that the best Britain could hope for in further > negotiations over the rules in the coming weeks was perhaps an increase in > the amount of bonus that can be deferred and therefore discounted when > calculating the total payout. > > But Michel Barnier, the European commissioner for financial regulation and > an author of the proposals, said the broad parameters would not change. > Asked about the possibility of any legal challenge to the bonus cap, he > replied: "Good luck." > > Britain's powerful financial sector fears the rules will put London at a > disadvantage and provoke an exodus of major banks and staff to rival > financial centers, although HSBC > (HSBA.L<http://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=HSBA.L>), > one of Britain's largest banks, has said it does not have any plans at this > stage to move its headquarters. > > 'ENOUGH IS ENOUGH' > > German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble indicated that he would be > uncomfortable with any country being outvoted on the new legislation, > opening up the possibility of some change. > > EU officials indicated that any alterations are likely to have only a > slight impact on the total amount of bonus that can be paid. > > "There is very little further we can do for them because we pushed the > negotiations to quite a degree, and we got the best possible compromise > with the parliament," Noonan told reporters before the meeting began. > "There isn't any more room left." > > Schaeuble told ministers he would back a greater flexibility in how a > banker's bonus is calculated, which could allow banks to pay more over the > long term, said one official who attended the talks. > > Britain could also try to push to change the scope of the rules, which > will apply to all EU bank staff globally, regardless of where they are > based. > > But any changes will also require the approval of the European Parliament. > Othmar Karas, the Austrian lawmaker who drove the negotiations in > parliament, said he did not see any reason to re-open the deal clinched > last week. > > While the finance ministers agreed not to finalize the deal on Tuesday, > partly out of courtesy to Osborne, there is little appetite to change it. > Officials indicated it would be approved later in March or possibly in > April. The aim is to put the legislation in place from January 1, 2014. > > Some in the British government believe banks could take legal action on > the grounds that the European Union is going beyond its remit in > legislating on remuneration, an official familiar with British thinking > told Reuters. > > AFME, the bank lobby group, stoked speculation, saying "it would not be > surprising" if the industry were gathering "legal opinions". But the > European Commission, which writes EU law, said it would be "absurd" to > challenge the legality of the cap. > > The new rules will not affect most bank staff, who on average earn bonuses > of up to 30 percent of salary, but target senior management and so-called > "risk takers", such as traders, whose bonuses can be many times their base > salary. > > Analysts estimate the law will initially affect around 300 to 500 people > in each large bank, or around 5,000 people in London all told. > > (Additional reporting by Annika Breidthardt, Luke Baker and Ilona > Wissenbach; Editing by Will Waterman) > > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Epistemology" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to epistemology+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to epistemology@googlegroups.com. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/epistemology?hl=en. 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