Cosmen backs Stagecoach October 20, 2009 JORGE Cosmen, National Express’ deputy chairman and largest shareholder, is backing rival Stagecoach in its bid for the ailing transport group. Cosmen, who pulled out of a joint bid with CVC Capital Partners to take over National Express last week, said he would now support an approach from Perth-based Stagecoach. The Scottish company had been [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING October 20, 2009 FINANCIAL TIMES GALLEONMOVINGASSETS INTO CASHBrokers to the Galleon Group – the hedge fund whose founder and president, Raj Rajaratnam, is at the centre of insider trading charges – report it is rapidly liquidating its investments in anticipation of a wave of investor redemptions. $12.9BN VALEPUSHTOENDDISPUTE Vale, the Brazilian mining group that is the world’s biggest [...]
Santander mulls special payout October 20, 2009 Santander may have to return cash to shareholders next year through a special dividend. Regulators are pressing banks to increase their capital ratios and Santander is set to overshoot its target. The bank has a target for core tier one capital of seven per cent of risk-weighted assets but expects to reach 8.5 per cent. [...]
Investors urged to back Lloyds October 20, 2009 Shareholders are being urged to back an expected rights issue at Lloyds as the “lesser of two evils”. Paul Mumford, of Cavendish Asset Management, said investors should support the bank in its bid to escape the Asset Protection Scheme. Lloyds is expected to launch a £11bn rights issue in the next few days following a [...]
BNY Mellon in 1.5bn loss on writedowns October 20, 2009 BANK of New York Mellon took a hefty charge during the third quarter following the restructuring of its securities portfolio, resulting in a net loss of $2.5bn (£1.52bn) – but the earnings season got off to an upbeat start elsewhere on Wall Street. The New York-based trust bank said the $4.8bn charge would reduce the [...]
Tories in bid to woo FSA sceptics… October 20, 2009 SHADOW chancellor George Osborne yesterday launched a charm offensive at the Financial Services Authority (FSA) as the Conservatives stepped up their preparations for a radical overhaul of the UK’s regulatory system after the next election. In a highly charged meeting at the FSA’s Canary Wharf headquarters, Osborne told the regulator’s senior staff that he appreciated [...]
… as the party recruits boffins to advise on regulation in the City October 20, 2009 THE Conservatives have appointed a raft of experts to a working group to advise on the sweeping changes they propose to the tripartite system of financial services regulation. The group includes Carol Sergeant, chief risk officer for Lloyds Banking Group; Jonathan Herbert, a Norton Rose partner; Simon McGuire, ex-vice chairman of investment banking at UBS; [...]
Qataris make millions from Barclays sale October 20, 2009 GULF state vehicle Qatar Holding yesterday offloaded half of its share warrants in Barclays, netting the bank’s biggest shareholder a fast profit of over £600m. Qatari investors, who still hold a direct shareholding of over seven per cent in Barclays, were issued with the warrants last November at a subscription price of 197.775p, as part [...]
ARE THE QATARIS SIGNALLING THAT THE RECENT RALLY IN BARCLAY’S SHARE PRICE IS OVER BY SELLING UP? October 20, 2009 KEITH BOWMAN HARGREAVES LANSDOWNI would say that the temptation to book over $1bn in profit became too great to ignore. Particularly set against a backdrop of similar funds that lost out on what they thought were bargain banking stocks before the crisis. It is a great opportunity to take profit but still keep a stake. [...]
Deutsche to snap up ABNAmro assets October 20, 2009 DEUTSCHE Bank agreed in principle to buy some ABN AMRO assets from the Dutch state in a deal which should clear the way for a merger of nationalised banks ABN and Fortis Bank Nederland. Under the deal, the acquisitive German lender will boost its Dutch operations by acquiring commercial bank HBU, 13 advisory branches, two [...]