HSBC Holdings Plc, Europe's biggest bank, said it could take a hit of up to $1.6 billion (1 billion pounds) in a settlement with a U.S. regulator over allegations it mis-sold mortgage-backed bonds during the housing bubble, Reuters reported. The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), the conservator of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, has alleged 18 banks misrepresented the quality of the collateral backing securities between 2005 and 2008. Swiss bank UBS paid $885 million in a settlement with the FHFA last month and Citigroup and General Electric have settled for undisclosed sums.

Syncapse, the social media marketing management company that had hoped to provide enterprise-level solutions for companies such as Coca-Cola and Johnson & Johnson on Facebook, has filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy protection in U.S. federal court, Business Insider reported. Syncapse was one of Facebook's "preferred marketing developers," a company that qualifies to serve ads into, and gather analytics from, the social network. The move suggests that the economics of social media marketing, absent being acquired by a bigger company, are more difficult than they may appear.

Seán Dunne’s adjudication as a bankrupt in Ireland marks the culmination in a five-month legal effort by one of his biggest lenders, Ulster Bank. The court’s ruling makes Dunne unique among the many former high-flying players of the boom-time property market – he is now bankrupt in two countries: Ireland, where he racked up debts of more than €700 million, and the United States, where he has lived for three years and is trying to start anew, the Irish Times reported.

Maxcom filed for pre-packaged Chapter 11 bankruptcy in a U.S. court, legal filings showed, as the Mexican telecoms firm pursues a recapitalization plan that would give full control to a investor group led by private equity firm Ventura Capital, Reuters reported. Small phone companies in Mexico have struggled to compete with billionaire businessman Carlos Slim's America Movil, which has about 70 percent of Mexican mobile connections and about 80 percent of the country's fixed lines.

Some local lenders to Mexican homebuilder Geo voted against signing an agreement the company recently reached with its major bank lenders to restructure its debt, according to a statement on Monday with Mexico's stock exchange, Reuters reported. The lenders hold local debt certificates that are backed by Geo assets. Geo, which is struggling with a heavy debt load and slowing home sales, said in June its main bank creditors had also agreed not to bring any new legal proceedings against the company and to suspend existing lawsuits.

Finance ministers from the Group of 20 leading nations plan to launch a new phase of the international crackdown on corporate tax avoidance this week even as UK business leaders are warning their government to resist “radical new solutions” to profit shifting by multinationals, the Financial Times reported. Britain has taken a lead in pressing for reform of the international tax rules after a wave of public anger over the low tax bills paid by some large multinationals.

Indebted Spanish media company Promotora de Informaciones SA has weighed filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the U.S., according to several people familiar with the matter, the latest indication of the troubled financial state of Spain's largest media company, The Wall Street Journal reported. The possible move by Prisa, as the company is known, comes as it seeks to refinance about $3 billion of debt, the people said. The discussions of different restructuring options are still fluid and nothing has yet been decided, they added.

In Seoul's upscale Gangnam neighborhood, made famous by pop star Psy's viral music video, government curbs on real-estate lending froze a market in which home prices had been rising as fast as 25% a year, The Wall Street Journal reported. In Toronto, housing prices reversed their rapid rise and fell for five months after the government changed rules to effectively increase monthly payments on new loans.

The National Asset Management Agency has taken a fresh legal challenge against property developer Sean Dunne in a bid to stop him walking away from debts of more than €700 million in the United States, the Irish Times reported. The State loans agency, which has a judgment debt of €185 million against Mr Dunne, filed a legal complaint within Mr Dunne’s US bankruptcy proceedings in a Connecticut court seeking to block his discharge from bankruptcy, which would prevent him embarking debt-free on a fresh financial start.

Rona Inc, Canada's biggest home-improvement retailer and distributor, will close stores, cut jobs and reduce costs in the second phase of a restructuring plan designed to return it to profitability, the company said on Thursday. Rona said it plans to close 11 unprofitable stores; reduce administrative, marketing, merchandising and distribution costs; and cut a further 125 administrative jobs.