Boris gets ready for Tube strike June 8, 2009 BORIS Johnson yesterday revealed plans to keep London rolling, even if tonight’s proposed 48-hour tube strike goes ahead. The industrial action on London Underground (LU), which comes after a pay dispute between union RMT and LU, is due to begin at 7pm this evening. Both parties were last night locked in talks. If the strike [...]
Brown now a lame-duck prime minister June 8, 2009 GORDON Brown may be an expert at surviving the internal struggles of his party but he and Labour are headed for political oblivion. It doesn’t matter how you look at it – a 15.7 per cent share of the vote and third place after the Tories and Ukip is a catastrophe for a governing party. [...]
EDF launches offer for EcoSecurities as bid war hots up June 8, 2009 CARBON credits firm EcoSecurities yesterday rejected a takeover bid from French utility giant Electricité de France (EDF), the second it has received in June so far, sparking hopes that a bidding war will soon break out for the company. EDF Trading, a subsidiary of EDF, said it was considering a cash offer of at least [...]
CITY MOVES WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS June 8, 2009 DeloitteThe business advisory firm has appointed risk management specialist Philipp Keller to its European Solvency II team. Keller, who joins the Zurich office as head of insurance risk management, was previously head of research and development and a board member of the Federal Office of Private Insurance in Switzerland. He is also an adviser on [...]
APPLE LAUNCHES NEW iPHONE June 8, 2009 APPLE yesterday unveiled the iPhone 3GS, a new version of the hit product, which has 100 new features and the ability to shoot video. The phone is expected to hit stores on 19 June in the US and costs between $199 (£124) to $299 for customers who sign up to a two-year contract. The existing [...]
Boris gets ready for Tube strike June 8, 2009 BORIS Johnson yesterday revealed plans to keep London rolling, even if tonight’s proposed 48-hour tube strike goes ahead. The industrial action on London Underground (LU), which comes after a pay dispute between union RMT and LU, is due to begin at 7pm this evening. Both parties were last night locked in talks. If the strike [...]
BlackRock nears BGI deal June 8, 2009 US ASSET manager BlackRock, led by chief executive Larry Fink, is poised to wrap up a $13bn (£8bn) deal for Barclays Global Investors (BGI) as early as tomorrow, in a move that will create the world’s largest money manager. The cash-plus-equity deal, which looks set to go ahead despite interest from Bank of New York [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING June 7, 2009 THE SUNDAYSThe Sunday Telegraph WIGLEY TO ADVISE ADVENTThe former chairman of Merrill Lynch’s European operations and a respected City figure, is joining the private equity firm Advent International to identify investment opportunities across the financial services industry. Wigley will become a part-time operating partner at Advent, which is sitting on a large cash-pile after raising [...]
Royal Mail heads for clash with Labour June 7, 2009 ROYAL Mail increased pressure on the government to quickly pass a bill to part-privatise the postal operator, warning that closing final-salary pension schemes for 150,000 staff will be at the top of its “options list” if no deal takes place. The threat comes amid frustration that the political process to get the privatisation through Parliament [...]
FSA fines up by 514 per cent June 7, 2009 The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has delivered on its vow to toughen up on market abuse, fining companies and individuals a record-breaking total of £27.3m in the year to 31 March, a 514 per cent increase on the previous year. Over the period, the regulator prohibited 46 individuals or companies from carrying out regulated activity [...]