PRESS DIGEST- British Business - July 22
July 22 (Reuters) - The following are the top stories on the business pages of British newspapers. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.
The Times
RBS PAYS 900,000 POUNDS FINE FOR AUSTRALIAN RATE-RIGGING
(http://thetim.es/1pxlC1F) Australian regulators have fined Royal Bank of Scotland nearly 900,000 pounds after the bank admitted its role in attempts to manipulate the country's equivalent of the Libor benchmark borrowing rate.
BANK OF ENGLAND'S COURT OPENS DOOR TO WOMEN CHIEFS
The female chief executives of the telecoms company TalkTalk and the Yorkshire-based power plant Drax are among the new appointees to the board of the Bank of England, which was heavily criticised for having insufficient women in senior positions.
The Guardian
HEDGE FUNDS USED 'DUBIOUS' MEANS TO BYPASS TAX RULES, SENATORS SAY
More than a dozen hedge funds, with assistance of Barclays and Deutsche Bank, used "dubious" financial products to claim billions in unjustified tax savings and circumvent rules meant to limit risky bets, a Senate subcommittee investigation has found.
COMPETITION REGULATOR MUST FORCE BANKS TO IMPROVE SERVICE, MPS SAY
MPs have called on the competition watchdog to force high street banks to improve standards and the way they treat their customers after the Competition and Markets Authority signalled it would investigate the industry.
The Telegraph
ESPIRITO SANTO CRISIS COULD AFFECT PORTUGAL'S ECONOMY, WARNS PRESIDENT ANIBAL CAVACO SILVA
The president of Portugal has warned that the financial crisis gripping the Espirito Santo family could affect the country's economy.
JUNCKER FACES POLITICAL TEST AS FINES LOOM ON ILLEGAL GERMAN TRADE SURPLUS
Germany's current account surplus is the largest ever recorded in proportional terms and far above the threshold for EU sanctions, posing a major political test for the incoming commission of Jean-Claude Juncker.
Sky News
GLENFIDDICH EYES 100 MLN STG DRAMBUIE SCOTCH MERGER
The family-owned business behind Glenfiddich and Grant's is examining a 100 million pound takeover of Drambuie, the liqueur reputed to be made from a recipe concocted by Bonnie Prince Charlie.
BBA IN TALKS ABOUT PAYMENTS COUNCIL MERGER
The banking industry's main lobbying group, British Bankers' Association, is considering proposals to merge with at least two of its peers amid pressure from leading members to reduce costs levied by trade organisations.
(Compiled by Aashika Jain in Bangalore; editing by Andrew Hay)
