Morning Market Roundup: U.K. Banks in Hot Water, China Tech, Pepsi’s Big Shakeup

Here’s what’s important in the financial world this morning:

U.K.: The U.K.’s biggest banks have been accused of profiting from risky interest rate derivative products at the expense of their business clients. The banks include HSBC, Barclays, Lloyds and RBS; they could see billions of pounds in damage because of legal action.

Many of the claimants who are small and medium businesses said they were unaware of the large costs from the products that had been sold to them to “protect loans from upward movements in interest rates,” according to The Sunday Telegraph.

(Related: Could We Soon Be Looking At Markedly Lower E-Book Prices?)

PepsiCo Inc.: The soda giant is adding to its management bench and is getting a possible successor ready for its Chairman and Chief Executive Indra Nooyi. They are bringing in an external candidate for a senior management role while tapping an internal candidate for a new post. This comes in light of investor unhappiness with the company’s current business numbers.

The company will announce on Monday that senior Wal-Mart Stores Inc. executive Brian Cornell will lead its biggest and most profitable business unit while senior company executive John Compton will be named to a new president position, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Tech: Chinese online video company Youku Inc. announced plans to merge with its competitor Tudou Holdings Ltd in an all-stock transaction, according to MarketWatch.

According to a corporate statement, Apple Inc.’s supplies of its new iPads for pre-order sales have sold out. Apple’s website estimates that preorders for the tablet should ship by Friday. Previously, Apple had said the preordered iPads would be available on its launch day. Customers had been limited to two iPads in preordering.

[Editor's note: the above is a cross post that originally appeared on Wall St. Cheat Sheet.]