INVESTMENT

The Obama administration is not interested in escalating a dispute with Switzerland over bank secrecy laws, Switzerland's top justice official said on Monday after meeting with her U.S. counterparts.

HSBC Holdings Plc, the largest European bank, on Monday announced it would initiate a rights offering to raise 12.85 billion pounds ($17.7 billion) as it copes with heavy losses in the United States.

The Obama administration's plan to begin the flow of credit in the financial system among certain types of assets by creating multiple investment funds to purchase them , people familiar with the matter told the Wall Street Journal on Monday.

U.S. stocks slid to 12-year lows on Monday as a record $61.7 billion loss for AIG and another government bailout for the insurer heightened concerns about the extent of the damage to the financial system.

HSBC launched Britain's biggest rights issue, raising 12.85 billion pounds ($18.1 billion) on Monday to help it overcome big losses in the United States and exploit the woes of weaker rivals.

Citigroup Inc may need to raise additional capital despite the U.S. government's move to bolster its capital base, said an analyst at Deutsche Bank, who sees a 2009 loss of about $4.5 billion for the company excluding any preferred share dividend payments.

HSBC launched Britain's biggest rights issue on Monday, to raise 12.85 billion pounds ($18.3 billion) to help it overcome big losses in the United States and exploit the woes of weaker rivals.

Stock index futures slid further on Monday after beleaguered insurer American International Group posted a $61.7 billion quarterly loss, signaling no let-up in the fallout from the worsening financial crisis.

Britain's leading share index fell 3.6 percent early on Monday, extending the previous session's sharp fall, with HSBC leading banks lower after it offered a deep discount rights issue.

HSBC launched a 12.5 billion pound ($17.7 billion) rights issue on Monday to shore up its balance sheet after annual profit more than halved and as bad debts soared in the United States.

HSBC launched a 12.5 billion pound ($17.7 billion) rights issue on Monday to shore up its balance sheet after annual profit more than halved and as bad debts soared in the United States.

HSBC launched a 12.5 billion pound ($17.75 billion) rights issue on Monday to shore up its balance sheet after annual profit fell and as bad debts soared in the United States.

Insurer AIG is set to take a $30 billion lifeline from the U.S. government and HSBC plans to raise up to $18 billion to counter a crisis that is punishing companies and crippling international trade.

HSBC will be cutting back its US consumer finance operations, the U.K. bank will announce on Monday, according to a report.

Abu Dhabi is assessing it's $7.5 billion investment in troubled U.S. banking giant Citigroup through convertible bonds that pay 11 percent interest but nothing has changed from its perspective, a source told Reuters on Sunday.

American International Group's board of directors has accepted a rescue package worth $30 billion, its third government bailout, according to media reports.

European and Southeast Asian leaders on Sunday rejected protectionism to safeguard their national interests against a global financial crisis, spelling out their blocs' commitments to coordinate policies.

Abu Dhabi is assessing its $7.5 billion investment in Citigroup as the bank's problems deepen and consequences of a possible nationalization become clearer, according to sources close to the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority.

Abu Dhabi is assessing its $7.5 billion investment in Citigroup as the bank's problems deepen and consequences of a possible nationalization become clearer, according to sources close to the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority .

Berkshire Hathaway Inc , Warren Buffett's insurance and investment company, barely broke even in the fourth quarter because of losses on derivatives contracts tied to the stock market.

Despite an often serious tone in his annual letter, billionaire investor Warren Buffett had a few light comments in his annual letter to investors this year.