Barclays

Barclays has said it intends to cut up to 12,000 jobs this year, including 7,000 in the UK, as it reveals it has upped its staff bonus pool despite a drop in profits.

Barclays Bank saw adjusted pre-tax profits fall by almost a third during 2013 as litigation costs impacted the business, but has increased the bonuses it pays staff.

Direct-to-consumer platform Strawberry Invest has launched today, with an annual platform charge of 0.40% on the first £50,000.

Barclays has been forced to issue confirmation of its pre-tax profits for 2013 a day ahead of its results after they were leaked in a diary column.

Hargreaves Lansdown has topped the Platforum's first list of Britain's best D2C platforms despite charging a higher price than many competitors.

Barclays plans to cut hundreds of jobs in its investment banking division as part of a restructure, according to reports.

Barclays Stockbrokers has revealed its clean pricing structure, introducing an AMC of 0.35% as it becomes the latest platform to undercut Hargreaves Lansdown's headline charges.

ALTERNATIVES

Wealth managers are positioning clients' portfolios cautiously this quarter amid expectations of a setback for equity markets, despite growing appetite for risk among investors.

Labour leader Ed Miliband will today outline plans to break up the largest UK banks, ending the dominance of the 'big four'.