Dutch state seizes DSB Bank October 12, 2009 THE Dutch Central Bank (DNB) has seized control of floundering financial institution DSB Bank, after the firm’s consortium of lenders failed to agree on a rescue plan amid a slew of deposit withdrawals. The DNB went to a Dutch court to seek permission to take control of DSB, in the wake of mass withdrawals from [...]
Xstrata sells its interest in El Morro copper mine October 12, 2009 MINING group Xstrata agreed to sell its 70 per cent interest in the El Morro copper-gold project in Chile for $465m (£294m) to Canada’s Barrick Gold, Xstrata said yesterday. “While we have demonstrated through the feasibility study that El Morro has strong prospects, our agreement with Barrick is a recognition that it will create more [...]
Heidelberg to issue bond to cut bank debt October 12, 2009 HeidelbergCement plans to issue more than €1bn (£937m) in bonds, tapping the resurging junk-bond market to reduce its reliance on banks. The world’s fourth-largest cement maker will issue a five-year bond and a seven-year bond, each worth more than €500m, to repay parts of syndicated bank loans, the company said yesterday. While the move was [...]
Citigroup announces appointment of two new co-heads of EMEAbanking October 12, 2009 US BANK Citigroup has appointed two new co-heads of banking in Europe, the Middle East and Asia, it said yesterday. James Bardrick, 47, and Manuel Falco, 45, both veterans of the company will assume their new responsibilities with immediate effect. Bardrick, who has spent 22 years with Citi, will move from his role as co-head [...]
London Mining hires Liberum Capital and GMP Securities to advise on listing October 12, 2009 London Mining, the UK-based company which develops mines for the steel industry, said yesterday it had appointed investment bank Liberum Capital as its adviser and joint broker to help its planned listing on Aim. GMP Securities will be the joint broker on the listing, which was first announced in July. London Mining said it had [...]
CUBS STRIKE OUT FOR BANKRUPTCY October 12, 2009 THE Chicago Cubs baseball team filed for bankruptcy yesterday as part of the team's planned sale to the Ricketts family by media conglomerate Tribune Company, according to court documents. The Cubs bankruptcy is aimed at shedding any claims on the team related to the bankruptcy of Tribune. Tribune will contribute the Cubs, Wrigley Field and [...]
Irish builders fear Nama impact October 12, 2009 Ireland’s “bad bank” scheme, Nama, risks stifling the already struggling construction industry if implemented according to the government’s current plans, the Construction Industry Federation (CIF) said yesterday. The government plans to cleanse banks of risky commercial property loans with a total book value of €77bn (£72bn) to kickstart lending and boost the recession-hit economy. “Existing [...]
Carillion sells off consultancy arm October 12, 2009 Carillion, the construction and outsourcing group, is selling off its consultancy arm Enviros for around £27m as it seeks to pay off debt. Engineering company Sinclair Knight Merz is buying the unit from Carillion, which is valued at around £1.1bn. The sale will help Carillion beat its target of bringing net debt below the half-year [...]
Paddy Power to cross channel October 12, 2009 Paddy Power, the bookmaker, is on course to meet analysts’ expectations of a return to profit growth next year and is looking to move into the French market by June, the firm’s chief executive Patrick Kennedy said yesterday. The Irish firm is set to take advantage of a relaxation of French law due next year. [...]
Lufthansa cost cuts on track October 12, 2009 LUFTHANSA is on course to meet its cost-cutting targets, its chief executive said yesterday. “We are on track in all areas,” Wolfgang Mayrhuber said, as he relaunched the airline’s on-board broadband internet service FlyNet. To safeguard profitability in the downturn, Lufthansa has said it plans to cut €1bn (£936m) of annual costs by 2011. It [...]