Markets

Santander has confirmed it is "exploring the possibility" of the sale of a stake in its asset management division.

The Co-operative Bank has appointed the former head of HSBC's North American propositions as its new chief executive.

REDWOOD

Cazenove has confirmed it is moving to stem flows into Julie Dean's UK Opportunities and offshore UK Equity fund as assets in the strategy approach £2.5bn.

MULTI-ASSET

George Osborne has started the sale process of the taxpayer stake in Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and Lloyds, within hours of both banks getting approval from regulators over their capital strength.

Close Brothers has reported positive net flows into its asset management division, with assets under management up 10% year to date.

The head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Christine Lagarde appeared before a French magistrate yesterday to face questioning over allegations of embezzlement and fraud.

St James's Place stock has fallen 10% in today's trading after majority shareholder Lloyds Banking Group placed 77m shares into the market.

The FTSE 100's long-running rally has been brought to a dramatic close this morning, with the index shedding 133 points in early trading as fears over an end to the US quantitative easing programme spook investors.