FTSE chairman Gareth Davis tells us why he’s in no rush to retire March 17, 2014 Serial chairman and former tobacco boss Gareth Davis tells Elizabeth Fournier how he juggles three FTSE-listed firms THE ROLE of a company chairman is a tricky one. As head of the board, a good chair is expected to lead from the front; hiring, firing and managing its members, while keeping one eye on governance and [...]
Caracal unveils £1.08bn merger with TransGlobe March 17, 2014 AFRICA-FOCUSED oil explorers Caracal Energy and TransGlobe yesterday said they have agreed to a $1.8bn (£1.08bn) merger, which will create the third largest independent oil producer in Africa. The deal will expand FTSE-listed Caracal’s reach beyond Chad into Yemen and Egypt and add a lower-risk drilling programme to its portfolio. The newly merged company will [...]
Essar takeover battle rumbles on as board rejects founders’ offer March 17, 2014 ESSAR Energy’s independent board committee has accused the majority shareholder of undervaluing the embattled power firm with its takeover offer, and is urging minority stakeholders to reject the bid. Essar Global Fund (EGF), which is controlled by the firm’s billionaire founders the Ruia brothers, had offered 70p per share for the remaining 22 per cent [...]
UK mutuals investor Capital for Colleagues starts trading today March 17, 2014 CAPITAL for Colleagues, an investment vehicle that focuses on opportunities in the employee-owned-business (EOB) sector, will today start trading on the London-based ISDX growth market, having raised £2.19m. The firm will have a market capitalisation of £3.25m on listing. “The company’s clearly defined strategy aims to provide capital and practical assistance to both current and [...]
City watchdog doubled dawn raids last year March 17, 2014 DAWN raids on suspects in frauds and other finance crime cases have almost doubled in the last 12 months, according to a new analysis of the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) actions. The City watchdog carried out 20 such raids in 2013, according to law firm RPC, up from 11 in 2012. The jump in searches [...]
HMRC steps up asset seizures to pay VAT bills March 17, 2014 THE NUMBER of businesses who have had assets seized and sold by HM Revenue & Customs to settle overdue VAT bills has soared during the recession, according to data obtained by finance provider Syscap. Figures sourced from HMRC show that 3,657 businesses had assets seized last year after being served distraint orders by the taxman, [...]
LivingSocial UK chief joins YPlan to spearhead European growth March 17, 2014 YPLAN, the mobile booking app founded by former City workers Rytis Vitkauskas and Viktoras Jucikas, has appointed the chief executive of LivingSocial as its operations chief, starting today. Peter Briffett ran LivingSocial UK and Ireland for four years before his move to YPlan, where he will be tasked with growing the app’s customer base and [...]
Economics is baffling to half the population March 17, 2014 JUST 48 per cent of UK adults understand how the economy works, according to a new poll out today. International research has uncovered an economic literacy gap that leaves the UK lagging behind many of its competitors around the world; especially when it comes to understanding how our spending decisions impact the local economy. Steve [...]
City Moves for 17 March 2014 | Who’s switching jobs March 17, 2014 Chelverton Asset Management The asset management firm has appointed Richard Bucknell as an investment director in its unquoted equities team. Prior to joining, Bucknell held senior investment management positions at Barclays Ventures. Insparo Asset Management The Africa and Middle East specialist investment firm has hired Peter Lindqvist as head of sales and marketing. Lindqvist was [...]
Best of the Brokers for 17 March 2014 March 17, 2014 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com MORRISONS Cantor Fitzgerald keeps its “buy” rating and puts its target under review after the supermarket’s profit warning last week. The broker thinks the shares will be supported by the prospect of a takeover by the likes of Amazon or a grocery rival [...]