Financials Flat After Mixed Earnings -- Financials Roundup

Banks, lenders and other financial companies were more or less flat after a mixed bag of earnings. Leveraged-buyout firm Carlyle Group ticked down even as it posted a higher third-quarter profit, helped by strong performance of its buyout funds, which boosted fee income. Mastercard shares were weak after the credit-card processor posted earnings short of some investor expectations. The price of digital currency bitcoin hit a record high, in dollar terms, after CME Group, the world's largest exchange operator by market capitalization, said it was preparing to launch bitcoin futures. This would be a major step into mainstream finance for bitcoin, likely drawing many more institutional traders into the market, and possibly opening the way for an exchange-traded fund tied to the futures--something that could lure retail investors.

-Rob Curran, rob.curran@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 31, 2017 16:37 ET (20:37 GMT)