HSBC joins RBS in £7.1m payout to bosses to dodge bonus cap August 13, 2014 Bosses at HSBC yesterday received £7.1m in shares in a new fixed allowance which avoids Brussels’ bonus cap. The EU rules stop banks paying bonuses of more than twice that bosses’ salaries. So banks have had to come up with new ways to raise their fixed pay to avoid being hit by the rules. The [...]
Markit revenues up by a tenth in first results since flotation August 13, 2014 DATA and financial information firm Markit notched up another quarter of solid revenue growth during the three months to June, despite a dip in profits. Revenues jumped by 11 per cent during the period, rising by $26.3m (£15.8m) to $264.6m in comparison to the same three months last year. The results are the firm’s first [...]
G4S shakes off tagging scandal as earnings rise August 13, 2014 OUTSOURCING firm G4S yesterday showed that its turnaround was gathering momentum, as it posted a 13.2 per cent rise in first-half earnings on the back of £1.2bn worth of new contracts. The FTSE 100 company, which has undergone a corporate overhaul to shrug off the prisoner tagging scandal, saw earnings rise to £86m, while revenue [...]
Look out Serco, G4S is leaner and meaner – Bottom Line August 13, 2014 Serco should sit up and take notice of G4S’ progress. While both firms were in the mire last year due to a prisoner tagging scandal, G4S swiftly set about overhauling its management and streamlining the business. And it’s working. Admittedly, most of G4S’ growth is coming from emerging markets rather than the UK, but a [...]
Swiss Life buys up German real estate firm as it looks to diversify August 13, 2014 Swiss Life announced yesterday that it was buying a German real estate firm as the insurance company moves increasingly into asset management to diversify its revenue stream under new chief executive Patrick Frost. The Swiss insurer said it was buying property service provider Corpus Sireo for €210m (£168m), with the deal due to close later [...]
SeaWorld’s share price tanks as Blackfish film becomes a whale of a problem August 13, 2014 US amusement park group SeaWorld yesterday reported poor second-quarter results and slashed its revenue guidance for the year, blaming the crash on recent media debate about its treatment of captive orcas had hurt attendance. Shares in the company, down 22 per cent over the past year through to Tuesday, plunged by more than one-third in [...]
Page sees jump in profit despite strong sterling August 13, 2014 SPECIALIST recruitment group Michael Page International reported “solid performances” from all four of its geographic regions in its six monthly update yesterday. If current trends continued, the business said it should perform to forecast for the full year. The FTSE-250 group reported revenue up 1.8 per cent to £512.2m and pre-tax profit 11.1 per cent [...]
Baring reshuffles the pack with new Schroders investment chief August 13, 2014 BARING Asset Management, the last remaining remnant of historic City firm Barings, yesterday appointed a new chief investment officer from blue-blooded rival Schroders, in the wake of a high level exec reshuffle. Ken Lambden, global head of equities at Schroders, will join the group on 16 September. He was previously chief executive of Schroders in [...]
Credit groups in the doghouse after ads fall foul of FCA rules August 13, 2014 THE CITY regulator is investigating more than 200 cases of product promotions, such as payday loans, debt management services and credit brokers, that may breach its rules on misleading customers. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said that of the 1,500 promotions it had reviewed since April, it had launched further investigation into 227 that it [...]
Legal & General quits insurance trade body ABI August 13, 2014 Legal & General (L&G) yesterday quit the UK’s biggest insurance lobby group, the Association of British Insurers (ABI), to strike out on its own in its bid to influence public policy. The FTSE 100 giant, led by chief executive Nigel Wilson, blamed its burgeoning profile as a fund manager and a lack of faith in [...]