Gaining from UBS strife April 22, 2010 WITH UBS caught in a maelstrom, its major rival Credit Suisse has been clearing up. Its private banking division raked in SwFr12.9bn in new assets from wealth management clients in the first three months of the year, up from SwFr5.4bn in the fourth quarter of last year and SwFr9.6bn in the same period of 2009. [...]
Axa buys $1.9bn private equity funds from BoA April 22, 2010 AXA Private Equity yesterday bought a $1.9bn (£1.2bn) portfolio of private equity funds from Bank of America, one of the industry’s biggest-ever deals and a sign of returning confidence after the crisis. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but Vincent Gombault, Axa Private Equity managing director for funds of funds, said the current environment [...]
Boss eats his words as DFS agrees a sale April 22, 2010 LORD Kirkham, the founder of the DFS sofa chain, is set for a big payday after agreeing a deal to sell the retailer to private equity firm Advent International for an estimated £500m. The move is a stark U-turn for Kirkham, who only last month said he was “categorically not interested in selling the business” [...]
Mobiles to be tapped by FSA April 22, 2010 THE City watchdog will try to push through tough new rules that would force firms to tap the mobile phones of traders as early as this year. The Financial Services Authority (FSA) believes records of mobile phone conversations will step up its battle against insider dealing. A consultation period ends on 14 June and the [...]
City watchdog is losing its battle against insider trading April 22, 2010 THE Financial Services Authority (FSA) is losing its fight against insider trading, according to a City survey. The report by the Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment will come as a blow to the FSA, which has stepped up its enforcement activity with a spate of arrests and big-money fines. Around 60 per cent of [...]
Phone tapping lowdown April 22, 2010 Q.Why do they want to tap traders’ mobile phones? A.The FSA sees a loophole in the system where traders can use mobile phones to illegally share confidential information. Q.Are phones not already tapped? A.Fixed line phones and email are currently recorded. The new legislation will encompass mobile calls, text messages and instant messaging. Q.How many [...]
Persimmon sees its sales rise by a fifth April 22, 2010 HOUSEBUILDER Persimmon yesterday said sales were up by a fifth on last year despite a “backdrop of continued uncertainty” from the fledgling economic recovery and upcoming election. The FTSE 250 listed group reported total sales since the start of the year stand at £1.15bn in a trading update. The firm said weekly sales volumes remain [...]
Essar Energy heads for $11bn valuation in City sharelisting April 22, 2010 ESSAR Energy yesterday revealed the share price range for its forthcoming listing that will raise around $2.5bn (£1.63bn) in one of London’s largest ever IPOs. New shares in Essar Energy, which will be 75 per cent owned by its Indian parent, will be priced at between 450-550p. At the top end of the range, Essar [...]
Virgin’s debt is restructured April 22, 2010 Virgin Media yesterday announced the completion of a three-year refinancing programme it says has “fundamentally changed the capital structure” of the business. Over three years, Virgin has switched its debt mix from near-term to longer-term bond debt, which it says is at “attractive” rates. The company has issued $1bn of convertible notes, £1.7bn of senior [...]
CenturyTel and Qwest to merge April 22, 2010 CENTURYTEL said yesterday it will buy Qwest Communications in a $10.6bn stock deal, combining the third and the fourth biggest US landline phone companies to help them compete more aggressively and cut costs. CenturyTel offered a 15 per cent premium to Qwest’s market price, and expects the acquisition to add to free cash flow right [...]