BlackRock's HPS fund gates withdrawals for a second quarter as insurer private credit exposure draws Treasury scrutiny, while HDFC Bank clears a governance review and a Singapore court advances a $2.7 billion 1MDB suit.

The Iran war and Strait of Hormuz disruption dominate global finance this week, as the IMF cuts growth forecasts, US banks post record but cautious Q1 results, and Hong Kong regulates stablecoins.

The BOJ, Fed and ECB all hold rates but diverge sharply on signals, as record first-quarter earnings at UBS, US banks and Standard Chartered mask early cracks in provisions and credit charges.

First-quarter results show fee, wealth and insurance income offsetting weaker margins across major banks, as Australia hikes rates, Malaysia holds steady, and the ECB and HKMA voice caution on stablecoins.

Kevin Warsh is confirmed as Federal Reserve chair, Trump's Beijing visit extends the US-China trade truce, Japan's megabanks post record profits with rising capital costs, and private credit stress deepens at FS KKR.

Currency pressure drives rate action in Indonesia, India and Nigeria as China holds its loan prime rate for a twelfth month, while US and UK regulators advance stablecoin supervision and tokenised settlement frameworks.

Diverging monetary policy and rapid AI adoption reshape banking risk this week, as Fed vice chair Bowman signals no rate hike, BOJ's Ueda flags oil-shock persistence, and regulators race to govern agentic AI.

ESMA advances centralised European market supervision as China extends state oversight to outbound investment, while US regulators strip reputational risk from supervisory guidance and the UK launches commercial variable recurring payments.

Intesa Sanpaolo's EUR 30.6 billion ($35.3 billion) bid for Monte dei Paschi becomes Italy's largest banking deal, as EU ministers advance centralised market supervision and Indonesia, South Korea and India take defensive currency measures.

The Fed's updated projections turn sharply hawkish under new chair Kevin Warsh, as Iran-war energy inflation pushes the Bank of Japan to a 31-year rate high and China issues its first AI governance rules for banks.

The BIS warns record sovereign debt held by non-bank investors poses new systemic risk, as Morgan Stanley gates a private credit fund again, and MAS launches an AI institute.

Four central bank chiefs unite in Sintra against forward guidance, as the ECB's Claudia Buch resists easing capital rules, China debuts an overnight repo tool, and Singapore clears a $2.7 billion 1MDB suit for trial.

Standard Bank becomes the first African bank authorised to clear Renminbi transactions, as HSBC's TradeCash goes live in Singapore and the IFC and Santander launch a $500 million supply chain finance facility.

In transaction finance this week, Standard Chartered completes the world's first live remittance under Swift's new retail payments scheme, as UK banks Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds and NatWest go live on the same cross-border framework.

This week's Risk and Capital Weekly Brief covers Gulf banks' strong AT1 demand, OCC-approved stablecoin trust charters for Circle and Sony Bank, ABN AMRO's AML fine, and Brazil's stalled BRB rescue.