Governance Code gains support October 18, 2010 Sixty-eight institutions have published statements of support for the new UK Corporate Stewardship Code, including 48 asset managers, 12 asset owners and eight service providers. “A critical mass of investors is coming through and this is a very important first step,” said Financial Reporting Council chairman, Baroness Hogg. The Stewardship Code is being introduced to [...]
RBC makes £963m offer for Bluebay October 18, 2010 BLUEBAY Asset Management has accepted a takeover offer from Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), it said yesterday, in a deal which values the fixed income investment firm at £963m ($1.5bn). Bluebay shareholders, if they agree to the deal, will receive 485p per share representing a premium of 29.1 per cent on the fund manager’s closing [...]
Insurer Hardy rebuffs offer from Beazley October 18, 2010 Lloyd’s of London insurer Beazley yesterday said it still hoped to clinch a takeover of Hardy Underwriting after its smaller peer rejected an initial 300p per share approach this month. Dublin-based Beazley said its proposed cash offer on 6 October valued Hardy at about £155m. The approach, which represented a 36 per cent premium to [...]
Grant Thornton reports 40pc surge in annual pre-tax profit October 18, 2010 Business and financial adviser Grant Thornton yesterday said annual pre-tax profits grew by 40.2 per cent to £77.6m following its merger with Robson Rhodes and a period of restructuring and cost-cutting. In the year to 30 June the firm’s revenue rose 0.4 per cent to £379.7m. Advisory revenue grew 11.1 per cent to £151.2m but [...]
AIA to close IPO books early as investors jump to buy the shares October 18, 2010 THE PLANNED Hong Kong initial public offering of AIA, the Asian life insurance business of American International Group (AIG), is set to close two days earlier than anticipated after institutional investors rushed to pledge their interest in buying the shares, it emerged yesterday. AIA has indicated that it will price the IPO later this week [...]
Summer hols give a lift to Eurotunnel October 18, 2010 EUROTUNNEL, the operator of the Channel Tunnel, said yesterday a bumper summer helped boost revenues for the year so far by 10 per cent. The Paris-based firm said core revenue for the three months to the end of September grew eight per cent compared to last year to €181.3m (£159m). This rose to €212.1m when [...]
Qatar Holding snaps up 5pc stake of Santander in Brazil October 18, 2010 QATAR will take a five per cent stake in the Brazilian unit of Spanish lender Banco Santander, with a $2.7bn (£1.7bn) investment that adds to its big bank deals in recent years. Santander, the Eurozone’s biggest bank, will issue bonds to Qatar Holding – the direct investment arm of the Qatar Investment Authority – that [...]
Northeast Utilities will buy rival Nstar for $4.2bn in all-stock deal October 18, 2010 Northeast Utilities will buy rival NStar in a $4.17bn (£2.63bn) all-stock deal to create a utility that will provide power and gas to more than half of the customers in New England, the companies said yesterday. The firms said the increase in scale would allow them to better shoulder their investment plans, and would also [...]
BP links bonus pay to safety October 18, 2010 FOURTH?quarter bonuses for staff at embattled oil major BP will be based entirely on safety, chief executive Bob Dudley has said. Dudley has sent an email to all staff members saying their performance in terms of safety and risk management would be the only factor used to work out bonuses. “We are taking this step [...]
Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton to abandon iron ore joint venture October 18, 2010 BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto yesterday confirmed they were ditching a plan to form the world’s biggest iron-ore joint venture, in a victory for steelmakers that could prompt both miners to step up competing expansions. The announcement marked the second failed attempt in three years by BHP chief executive Marius Kloppers to buy into Rio’s [...]