As Bank of England governor Mervyn King approaches the end of his tenure, speculation is mounting over who will take the hot seat at the Bank of England when he steps down.

Alan Brown, the chief investment officer at Schroders, is to step down from the board and from his role at the next AGM.

Yields on UK gilts jumped in early trading as investors reacted to the threat of a possible downgrade of the UK's AAA rating.

F&C Asset Management has told investors it expects to take a £2.3bn hit to its assets under management this year when Friends Life withdraws money from its annuities business.

Aviva Investors has restructured its business to focus more on fixed income, real estate and multi-asset investments for institutional clients.

The yield on gilts tumbled near to record lows this morning as investors piled into any sovereigns which have retained their AAA-status after widespread EU downgrades.

Eurozone indices sold off sharply in early trading as fears over a break-up of the region swept across markets once again.

EUROPE - Eurozone indices sold off sharply in early trading as fears over a break-up of the region swept across markets once again.

UK/SWITZERLAND - Swiss banking giant UBS has raised its estimate of the losses allegedly caused by rogue trader Kweku Adoboli to $2.3bn.

UK - M&G, the asset management arm of insurer Prudential, saw profits rise 39% in the first half of 2011 despite a sharp decline in inflows.