Lloyds Banking Group has reported pre-tax profits of £2bn for the first quarter, well ahead of analysts' estimates, after the lender made a number of cost savings and profited from selling 20% of its stake in St. James's Place (SJP).

The board of the £156m Henderson Global trust, managed by Brian O'Neill, is proposing to change its benchmark to reduce its hefty exposure to UK equities.

The Treasury has warned an independent Scotland could have dire implications for sterling, leaving the UK pound vulnerable to speculators.

BlackRock's Nick McLeod-Clark has stepped down from running the firm's £698m UK Income fund to take an extended period of leave to recover from poor health.

Hargreaves Lansdown has topped the FTSE 100 index in early trading after reporting record levels of assets under administration in its quarterly results this morning.

Artemis Investment Management has waived initial charges across its fund range, which includes high profile vehicles such as Adrian Frost and Adrian Gosden's £620m Artemis High Income fund.

Morningstar has named the ten most popular investment trusts investors paid close attention to during Q1.

Senior portfolio manager Ryan Hughes will leave Skandia in the coming months to pursue a new opportunity in the industry.

Fitch has cut China's local currency rating from AA- to A+, amid concerns the country is not doing enough to address its soaring debt levels.

Ex-Schroders head of UK and European credit Adam Cordery has joined Santander Asset Management after exiting Schroders last July.