HSBCsells NYCoffice for $330m October 4, 2009 HSBC yesterday agreed to sell its New York headquarters to Israel’s Koor Industries and Property and Building for $330m (£207m). Koor and Property and Building are both subsidiaries of Israeli holding company IDB Holding, which said it would receive $45m in rental income in the first year while operating expenses will total $18.5m. The bank [...]
Barclays eyes Standard Life banking arm October 4, 2009 BARCLAYS is set to enter exclusive talks which could see it snap up Standard Life’s banking division, after rival suitors walked away. The bank, led by chief executive John Varley, is expected to be granted exclusivity by the insurer later this week after it expressed strong interest in the arm, which has been valued at [...]
OTC reforms to be softer October 4, 2009 FIRMS that trade in over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives look set to win an important exemption under plans to overhaul the market, according to draft legislation that is working its way through the US Congress. Lawmakers in the US had planned to introduce rules that would have seen all standardised OTC derivatives processed through clearing houses in [...]
Tucker proposes bank levy October 4, 2009 Bank of England deputy governor Paul Tucker yesterday said that a new levy should be in place to force banks to cough up for the cost of future crises . Tucker said that if the government is required to provide rescue funds in the future, there should be a system in place to force banks [...]
Portsmouth poised for takeover October 4, 2009 Portsmouth football club is set for a new takeover after owner Sulaiman Al Fahim has said he is to sell a majority stake in the club to a consortium spearheaded by Saudi tycoon Ali Al Faraj. Arab businessman Al Fahim only completed his protracted takeover of Pompey a few weeks ago, but has struggled to [...]
Lloyds denies bonus plans October 4, 2009 Lloyds Banking Group has refuted allegations that it plans to pay multi-million pound bonuses to its top managers. The rebuttal comes after it was alleged that the bank planned to match the pay of Royal Bank of Scotland’s executives. Lloyds claims that its remuneration committee is in the very early stages of a review and [...]
Japanese ex-finance minister dies October 4, 2009 A former Japanese finance minister was found dead at his home yesterday. Shoichi Nakagawa, who had to resign this year after appearing to be drunk at a G7 press conference, is not thought to have been the victim of foul play. An autopsy is expected.
Volvo approached by US group October 4, 2009 China’s Geely Automotive is thought to be readying itself for a takeover battle in the race to snap up Volvo, the loss making Swedish car manufacturer, from owner Ford. Geely, who has been in talks with Ford since September, is now facing competition from a US led consortium, fronted by Michael Dingman, a former Ford [...]
Aviva to raise 1bn by listing its Dutch unit October 4, 2009 INSURANCE group Aviva will today announce plans to raise £1bn through a partial flotation of Dutch unit Delta Lloyd. The insurer is expected to float between 30 and 40 per cent of the Dutch business on the Euronext Stock Exchange in Amsterdam. The listing will be the biggest initial public offering in Europe in the [...]
Legoland owner sets its sights on UStheme parks October 4, 2009 Blackstone, the private equity owner of Legoland and Madame Tussauds, is nearing a deal to snap up two of America’s famed theme parks for up to $3bn (£1.8bn). The US attractions SeaWorld and Busch Gardens are being sold off by brewing giant Anheuser-Busch InBev, which is dumping non-core assets to help pay for its $52bn [...]