Barclays will take a $1.3 billion writedown because of US tax reform

• Ben Martin, Reuters

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FILE PHOTO: Chief executive officer of Barclays, Jes Staley, takes part in the Yahoo Finance All Markets Summit in New YorkThomson Reuters

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• Barclays will take a $1.3 billion writedown because of US tax reform.
• The bank says the tax overhaul will cause its tier 1 capital to fall by about 20 basis points.

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(Reuters) - Barclays expects to take a writedown of about 1 billion pounds ($1.34 billion) on its annual post-tax profit as a result of the U.S. tax overhaul, the bank said in a statement on Wednesday.

The reform to the tax system signed into law by President Donald Trump on Dec. 22 will force the British lender to reduce the value of its deferred tax assets, prompting it to take a one-off charge in its results for the 12 months to the end of December.

It will also lead to the bank's common equity Tier 1 capital ratio, a key measure of its financial strength, falling by about 20 basis points, the lender said.

Since taking the helm at Barclays in December 2015, Chief Executive Jes Staley has streamlined the bank into a transatlantic lender focused on the United States and Britain.

The restructuring has led it to exit a raft of non-core operations, such as its business in Africa and units in Asia, in a bid to simplify its structure and boost returns to shareholders.

Barclays already slumped to a 628 million pound attributable loss in the nine months to the end of September following write-offs in the wake of its exit from Africa. The 1 billion pound charge to account for the U.S. tax changes is expected to push it further into the red.

The $1.5 trillion tax overhaul is the biggest reform of the U.S. tax system since the 1980s and will see that corporate tax rate slashed to 21 percent from 35 percent.

While Barclays said the reduction in the tax rate is expected to "positively impact" its future post-tax earnings in the United States, it also cautioned that the Base Erosion Anti-Abuse Tax (BEAT), which was included in the legislation and designed to prevent multinational firms from abusing the tax code, could significantly offset that benefit.

"Due to the uncertain practical and technical application of many of these provisions, it is currently not possible to reliably estimate whether BEAT will apply and if so, how it would impact Barclays," the lender added. ($1 = 0.7463 pounds) (Reporting by Ben Martin, editing by David Evans)

NOW WATCH: Here's what the Senate Republicans' tax plan means if you're making $25,000, $75,000, or $175,000 a year

More: Barclays Write-Downs Tax Reform

GE is raising its stake in Sweden's Arcam to more than 90%

• Philip George, Reuters

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• General Electric is raising its stake in Swedish 3D printer maker Arcam to more than 90% from 77%.
• GE will buy Arcam's outstanding shares from Elliott Management and Polygon Investment Group for 345 Swedish crowns ($41.44) per share.

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(Reuters) - General Electric Co said on Wednesday it will raise its stake in Swedish 3D printer maker Arcam AB to around 95 percent from 77 percent after buying shares from hedge funds Elliott and Polygon.

GE said it will buy Elliott Management and Polygon Investment Group's outstanding shares for 345 Swedish crowns ($41.44) each.

GE also said it plans to acquire all remaining shares of Arcam in a compulsory buy-out procedure and to request that the company delist its shares from the Nasdaq Stockholm exchange.

Activist Elliott built a 10 percent stake in Arcam in October 2016 after GE announced an initial tender for the 3D printer maker, which the hedge fund rejected.

GE later offered a 5 percent bump on its first offer, raising it to 300 crowns per share, and Arcam said GE's offer was completed in November 2016.

A spokeswoman for Elliott declined to comment while Polygon did not respond to requests for comment.

Arcam shares were up 10.3 percent at 1200 GMT.

3D printing has been used to build prototypes for decades but has become more widespread for industrial mass production in recent years, with uses including the production of dental crowns, medical implants and light aircraft parts.

GE has long been one of the main proponents of industrial 3D printing, using it to make fuel nozzles for its new LEAP jet engine in what marked a big step in using the technology in mass production. ($1 = 8.3276 Swedish crowns) (Reporting by Philip George in Bengaluru and Maiya Keidan and Ben Martin in London; Editing by Sayantani Ghosh and Adrian Croft)

Get the latest General Electric stock price here.

NOW WATCH: Here's what Trump's tax plan means for people at every income level from $20,000 to $269,000 a year

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HNA is long-term investor in Deutsche Bank, HNA representative says

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FRANKFURT, Dec 27 (Reuters) - HNA Group is a long-term investor in Deutsche Bank, the Chinese conglomerate's representative on the bank's board told a German newspaper.

"Deutsche Bank is a core, high-prestige investment for HNA," Alexander Schuetz, said in an interview published in Wednesday's Handelsblatt.

Schuetz sought to dismiss any lingering speculation that HNA would sell its stake in the German lender, which is just under 10 percent and valued at around 3.3 billion euros ($3.9 billion).

"We want to show that this is totally wrong," he was quoted as saying.

HNA's $50 billion worth of deal-making over the past two years has sparked intense scrutiny of its opaque ownership and use of leverage.

In the interview, Schuetz pointed to a new financing structure with derivatives -- with a three-year maturity - that insure against a drop in the bank's share price.

"This shows that HNA is focused on the long-term and has no interest in a sale," Schuetz said.

Pressure on HNA's finances has risen after the Chinese government told major banks in June to review their credit exposure to HNA and a handful of other non-state companies.

However, an HNA executive told Reuters this month that the group was not facing a liquidity crisis and characterised high profile investments in Deutsche and hotels group Hilton as successful. ($1 = 0.8423 euros) (Reporting by Tom Sims; Editing by Keith Weir)

Making the Future (Video)

Making the Future

2014 

Our world is constantly evolving. In recent decades, the digital age has revolutionized the way we consume and share information while green technologies have given us the means to produce our own energy. Soon, the world may experience another seismic shift as we attain the tools to create our own physical products. Produced by the VPRO documentary series, Making the Future examines this inspiring phenomenon which could forever alter the global economy and our way of life.

The bulk of the film takes place at the Maker Faire in San Mateo, California, where a new generation of hobbyists gather to show off their homemade creations. Easily accessible 3-D printers, drones and artificial intelligence technologies have democratized the process of innovation. The Internet provides these inventors with a forum where they can cut out the middle men, and share their concepts with communities of like-minded individuals. They work in collaboration to develop, produce and distribute the products of the future.

Tools and raw materials are cheaper than ever, and start-up costs are dwindling. The goods that used to be produced in mammoth multi-million dollar factories can now be realized in someone's basement. This dynamic poses a major challenge to the economic principles of capitalism as we know them, and it's put large corporations and brick and mortar operations on notice. Behemoths like NASA have recognized the writing on the wall, and are actively recruiting these makers to create autonomous robotic systems and other highly progressive technologies.

The maker movement encompasses much more than just creating your next piece of furniture on a 3-D printer. This do-it-yourself mentality has also reaped rewards in scientific fields like synthetic biology. With a modest workstation and information gathered from the web, an amateur scientist can set up their own homegrown lab where they might possess the capacity to manipulate human DNA and bacteria. This could bring about the next great cure for a mystifying disease. But a shadow figure with more nefarious motives could also produce the next great plague.

Making the Future provides an eye-opening look at the benefits and potential dangers that may accompany the next industrial revolution.

Directed by: Martijn Kieft

The Blockchain and Us (Video)

The Blockchain and Us

2017 

Global awareness of bitcoin has spread like wildfire in the past decade. Still, much confusion persists over how this digital currency works, and the implications it might hold for all of us in the not so distant future. The new documentary The Blockchain and Us isn't a dry or overly technical exercise that seeks to explain every nuance of this complex monetary system. Instead, the film calls for the expertise of financial wizards and technology geeks from around the world to expose its potential for shaping a brave new world.

Invented in 2008 by an elusive figure or entity known as Satoshi Nakamoto, bitcoin is an experimental currency which is traded through the digital stratosphere. All transactions are completed on a peer-to-peer basis, which eliminates the need for banks, brokers, or any other intermediaries. These transactions are all stored for public view on a blockchain, an endless digital spreadsheet that is secured by unbreakable military-grade encryption.

This revolutionary system turns our traditional currency into digital assets, and it could transform the way we conduct all levels of business in our daily lives. At this time, the system is too young and volatile to challenge our current monetary exchange system, but banks and other businesses are beginning to take the technology seriously nevertheless. Many feel it's just a matter of time before the bitcoin system irons out its kinks and becomes the norm, so there is a sense of urgency on their part to evolve into it or risk irrelevancy.

According to each of the film's esteemed interview subjects, the blockchain network could usher in a new era that is more inclusive, diverse and humane. Currently, over 70% of the world's population functions without any connection to the financial services industry. Blockchain opens the door for their involvement, and unleashes a massive global demographic for existing businesses. This dynamic could fundamentally change the lives of billions across the globe, and significantly narrow the margins of income inequality.

The future of bitcoin might be uncertain at the moment, but its possibilities are limitless. The Blockchain and Us is an effective primer on an exciting new phenomenon that will continue to drive debates and innovative thinking for years to come.

Directed by: Manuel Stagars

Apple just admitted it's slowing down older iPhones — but says it has a good reason for doing it

• Kif Leswing
 

• Dec. 20, 2017, 3:25 PM
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An iPhone 6, which Apple released in 2014.Flickr/Yanki01

• Replacing an older iPhone's battery can help it perform better on speed tests.
• That's because Apple is using a new power-management feature to prevent iPhones with older batteries from suddenly shutting off, the company told Business Insider on Wednesday.
• Apple says it isn't purposely slowing down older iPhones to encourage customers to buy new models, debunking a popular conspiracy theory.

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Over the past few months, people have discovered that older iPhones curiously become fasterafter the battery is replaced.

That, of course, has fueled conspiracy theories that Apple slows down older iPhones when a new model comes out. Data from a top iPhone benchmark developer published earlier this week seemed to confirm it.

But Apple explained on Wednesday why iPhones with older batteries might have lower peak processor performance.

It turns out that Apple is limiting how much power an iPhone processor can draw in certain circumstances, therefore limiting the processor's peak performance.

But it's not to make older iPhones slower — it's a new feature to help prevent them from suddenly turning off.

Here's Apple's full explanation, provided to Business Insider by a representative:

"Our goal is to deliver the best experience for customers, which includes overall performance and prolonging the life of their devices. Lithium-ion batteries become less capable of supplying peak current demands when in cold conditions, have a low battery charge or as they age over time, which can result in the device unexpectedly shutting down to protect its electronic components.

"Last year we released a feature for iPhone 6, iPhone 6S and iPhone SE to smooth out the instantaneous peaks only when needed to prevent the device from unexpectedly shutting down during these conditions. We've now extended that feature to iPhone 7 with iOS 11.2, and plan to add support for other products in the future."

Apple's point is that if an iPhone tries to draw more power than the battery is capable of, it will suddenly shut down, as many did before last year's update. So what it's doing instead is controlling how much power older phones can draw so it can prevent the device from failing. Older batteries simply can't provide as much power as new ones.

Apparently, the company is happy with its current fix and plans to roll it out to other products.

Rechargeable batteries have a limited lifespan — and most Apple products have a built-in one — so the shutdown issue is something all devices will eventually have to deal with if they're used long enough.

Apple expects an iPhone to get three years of use, so if you charge your iPhone every night, you might want to get a new battery before its third year of service.

Apple also says iPhones work best at room temperature, or between 32 and 95 degrees Fahrenheit.

So if you think your phone isn't performing at its best, or you want to refresh an old phone, try replacing its battery. Not only is it likely to help your phone last an entire day — it might give it a speed boost too.

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