Is it more painful to see the value of your fund disappear as the global economy crumbles, or for another man to punch you as hard as he can in the face?

For Elliot `The Machine Gun` Odell, a 32-year-old Briton working in the hedge fund industry in Hong Kong, the chance to find out was irresistible.

Shares in French bank BNP Paribas fell on Wednesday on rumours over a possible capital increase and uncertainty over its acquisition of the Belgian operations of finance group Fortis.

Shares in BNP Paribas closed down 11.2 percent at 36.245 euros, taking losses so far this week to more than 22 percent.

The head of the International Monetary Fund warned on Wednesday that the global financial crisis was far from over despite a recent slight thaw in the key credit markets.

`The credit freeze is no longer as hard as it was,` said Dominique Strauss-Kahn, but added: `There is a bit of circulation (of credit) but not enough for the system to function well.

The global economic downturn could not have hit Africa `at a worse time` as the continent struggles with food shortages and humanitarian crises, the president of the African Development Bank (AfDB), Donald Kaberuka, said Wednesday.

The head of the AfDB made his comments at the opening of the sixth annual African Development Forum in Addis Ababa.

Shareholders of British bank Lloyds TSB on Wednesday backed the takeover of troubled rival HBOS and a recapitalisation that will hand the British government a key stake.

Lloyds TSB investors, holding an extraordinary general meeting in Glasgow, Scotland, voted almost 96 percent in favour of the HBOS takeover.

Global financial firm Barclays on Wednesday forecast India will have over 400,000 dollar-millionaires by 2017, making it a leading world wealth market.

The forecast came as it launched its wealth management business in India to provide client advisory and investment services to `high net worth` individuals.

The biggest German bank, Deutsche Bank, has been implicated in a US tax evasion investigation, a press report alleged on Wednesday.

The biggest German bank, Deutsche Bank, has been implicated in a US tax evasion investigation, a press report alleged on Wednesday.

Shares in French bank BNP Parisbas fell in morning trading on Wednesday on rumours over a possible capital increase and uncertainty over its acquisition of the Belgian operations of finance group Fortis.

BNP`s shares were showing a drop of 8.50 percent to 37.34 euros in an overall Paris market which was down 0.80 percent. The stock had fallen by 5.13 percent on Tuesday.

Shares in French bank BNP Parisbas fell in morning trading on Wednesday on rumours over a possible capital increase and uncertainty over its acquisition of the Belgian operations of finance group Fortis.

BNP`s shares were showing a drop of 8.50 percent to 37.34 euros in an overall Paris market which was down 0.80 percent. The stock had fallen by 5.13 percent on Tuesday.