Two staff from the bank assisted him on the street with one holding an umbrella to stop him getting wet.

BBC: Disabled man has to make bank transaction outside in rain

Mr. Steely White, who cycled up to Barclays jauntily holding an open umbrella and riding a black matte Dutch commuter bike whose weight he estimated at about 50 pounds, said the valet service has been a hit in other bike-friendly locales.

WSJ: Barclays Pedals Bike Valet Service

His Fininvest holding company has AC Milan under its vast umbrella, and in an interview just before his departure he suggested he might become the president of the football club once again - three years after being forced to give up the role due to a conflict of interests in the wake of his 2008 election win.

BBC: Italy crisis: What next for Silvio Berlusconi?

At the base, the new prime minister of Somalia's Transitional Federal Government (TFG) emerged from the back of an armoured truck, followed by a retinue of aides - one holding a large umbrella over his head.

BBC: Mogadishu machinations: Is the famine an opportunity?