Northern Rock steps up law suit against UBS August 17, 2014 NORTHERN Rock has called on a US judge to advance its case against Swiss bank UBS, which it is trying to sue over a portfolio of mortgage loans the British lender bought in the years before the financial crash. The British bank wants to sue UBS for $48.5m (£29m), arguing the investment bank knew the [...]
Quindell to face investors in the wake of half-year challenges August 17, 2014 Embattled insurance firm Quindell will face investors this week as it reports its first set of results since its shares were hit by US short seller Gotham City Research in April, an unsuccessful premium London listing in June, and swirling doubts that surround its key contract with RAC. Quindell, whose shares plummeted 60 per cent [...]
Poultry empire Moy Park eyes £1bn stock float August 17, 2014 MARFRIG, the Brazilian owner of food giant Moy Park, is exploring plans for a London public offering of the firm which could value the poultry producer at £1bn. Moy Park, which supplies meat to fast food chains, including McDonald’s and Burger King, issued £200m of bonds earlier in the year, seen as a precursor to [...]
Clock ticking as Carillion mulls Balfour Beatty options to sweeten £3bn mega-merger deal August 17, 2014 The saga of a potential £3bn mega-merger between construction giants Carillion and Balfour Beatty has entered its endgame, with Carillion considering its options to entice its rival as the clock ticks down on the chances of a deal. Carillion has until this Thursday to make another approach to its reluctant rival, after which it will [...]
Three reasons why it looks like wages are doing so badly – Bottom Line August 17, 2014 The picture seemed to be crystal clear. With pay packets getting smaller, and Bank of England governor Mark Carney striking a notably dovish tone, any rise in interest rates could be assumed to be some way off. This was the mood half-way through last week, when the pound dropped more than one cent against the [...]
Branches close as customers do banking online with 7bn transactions in 2013 August 17, 2014 Britons made almost 7bn online banking transactions last year, according to figures published today from the British Bankers’ Association (BBA). Internet banking use has surged by 40 per cent since 2009, the numbers show. But the rise of online banking has hastened the demise of the traditional bank branch. Over the same period, the number [...]
Morgan: government proud of record on female employment August 17, 2014 A MINISTER has hit back at a damning report which levels heavy criticism at the coalition for its record on female employment. The Fawcett Society research suggests that under-employment of women has nearly doubled since 2008, with 371,000 women having moved into self-employment, an occupation the campaign group claims is traditionally poorly paid. Hitting back [...]
Anti-fraud staff in high demand August 17, 2014 BANKS’ anti-money laundering contractors have seen their pay rise by an average of 17 per cent in the past year, according to recruitment firm BrightPool. Its figures, out today, show 2,157 new roles were created in the past year, a jump of 54 per cent on the year. The data come after bosses at HSBC [...]
New lender turns a profit August 17, 2014 CHALLENGER bank Cambridge & Counties has reported its maiden profit two years after its launch. The small business specialist, which is owned by Cambridgeshire Local Government Pension Fund and the University of Cambridge’s Trinity Hall, delivered a profit of £1m for the six months to the end of June compared to a loss of £700,000 [...]
Rain Newton-Smith: UK business body CBI gets new economics chief August 17, 2014 The confederation of British Industry (CBI) today announced the appointment of Rain Newton-Smith as the business group’s director of economics. Newton-Smith moves from Oxford Economics, a consultancy at which she was head of emerging markets, and has previously worked on monetary analysis at the Bank of England. The CBI said that Newton-Smith’s expertise in Asia [...]