Evolve Capital set to relinquish its hold over Astaire July 15, 2010 TROUBLED stockbroker Astaire is set to revamp its ownership structure after announcing plans to distance itself from current majority shareholder Evolve Capital. Evolve, run by stockbroking veteran Edward Vandyk, acquired Astaire – formerly Blue Oar Securities – after a bitter takeover battle at the turn of last year. The deal preceded a number of acquisitions [...]
Piraeus Bank moves to buy Greek state stakes July 15, 2010 GREECE’S fourth-largest lender Piraeus Bank offered to buy the government’s controlling stakes in two banks yesterday, in the first set of mergers seen as key for the sector’s survival. The country’s socialist government has been urging banks to consolidate and form stronger companies better able to deal with the backwash of the debt crisis and [...]
Carlyle spends £2.5bn on health supplements firm July 15, 2010 PRIVATE equity giant Carlyle made the latest in a string of high value acquisitions yesterday by purchasing US nutritional supplements maker NBTY for $3.8bn (£2.5bn). Carlyle’s $55 per share cash offer represents a 47 per cent premium to NBTY’s closing price on Wednesday, and is one of the biggest private equity deals of the year. [...]
Penthouse publisher hires adviser to pursue Playboy July 15, 2010 FriendFinder Networks, the owner of adult magazine Penthouse, has hired a financial adviser as it prepares to counter Hugh Hefner’s bid to buy Playboy Enterprises. FriendFinder, an internet-based social networking and multimedia entertainment firm, yesterday said it has retained Imperial Capital. On Monday FriendFinder said that Hefner’s offer of $5.50 in cash for each of [...]
Virgin close to legal action over media JV July 15, 2010 VIRGIN?Media is almost certain to take legal action over a controversial video-on-demand venture backed by the BBC. Project Canvas is a joint venture between media giants including BT, TalkTalk and ITV that will offer video streamed over users’ broadband connections. It has come under fierce criticism by Virgin and Sky, who say it is bad [...]
NTT in £3bn Dimension bid July 15, 2010 Nippon Telegraph and Telephone (NTT) has agreed to buy South African IT firm Dimension Data for $3.2bn (£2.1bn) as it seeks growth in emerging markets to offset a stagnant economy at home. Dimension Data, which is a major reseller for networking equipment giant Cisco Systems, has seen growth in Asia and Africa as customers buy [...]
Apple forced into a rare press call over iPhone 4 July 15, 2010 THE world’s largest technology firm will host a rare press conference today as it tries to limit the fallout from the antenna problems plaguing its new phone. Steve Jobs is expected personally to host the press-call, at which he will play down the reception problems with his firm’s flagship iPhone 4. Apple was dealt a [...]
Film studio lists on the main market July 15, 2010 THE studio behind the smash-hit Twilight series stepped up to the main market yesterday. Entertainment One, which is also responsible for the Peppa Pig children’s series, moved its listing from the Aim-market. Chief executive Darren Throop said: “I am delighted to lead Entertainment One onto the main market today. “Our graduation from Aim illustrates the [...]
Vodafone eyes Australian bond offer as it seeks to offload at least 130 staff July 15, 2010 Telecoms giant Vodafone has approached investors to test their appetite for a possible Australian dollar bond issue. Preliminary discussions centred on a seven-year issue at around 170 basis points over swap. Investors named National Australia Bank (NAB) as the bank which was marketing the possible issue. Vodafone said it has no firm plans at this [...]
Microsoft founder Allen to leave fortune to charity July 15, 2010 MICROSOFT co-founder Paul Allen said he is committing the majority of his estimated $13.5bn (£8.8bn) fortune to philanthropy after his death. Allen, who announced in November he was undergoing treatment for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, follows in the footsteps of former business partner Bill Gates and billionaire investor Warren Buffett, who have both pledged the vast majority [...]