The Scottish government has announced plans for a £2 billion national investment bank to support SMEs and "strategic projects" with "patient" long-term loans, reports the FT. Scotland's first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, said she wanted the government-owned bank to be in operation by 2020, filling a gap in the market for loans of £1 million to £10 million for small and medium-sized businesses with high growth potential that struggle to find funding from the private sector due to "short-termism and risk aversion". Sales of homes in both the US and the UK are slumping, according to the FT. It reports that, in January, pending home sales in the US fell to the lowest level since 2014 - and the measure, which counts signed contracts where transactions have not yet closed, saw its steepest one month decline since May 2010. Meanwhile, in the UK, Foxtons real estate agency said sales activity in London is at "near historic lows". Towards the end of last year London's house prices dropped for the first time since 2009, and potential sellers are now wary of listing.   Chinese banks are to be given more capital raising tools as the government crackdown on shadow banking threatens their ability to maintain their required cash buffers, reports Caixin. The banks have had to assume responsibility for assets that could previously just keep off their books. The new rules cover banks' issuance of bonds.