Climate camp protesters gather to give RBSstick September 1, 2009 ROYAL Bank of Scotland’s Bishopsgate headquarters was yesterday invaded by climate change activists who stuck themselves to the trading floor with superglue in protest at the bank’s funding of fossil fuel projects. Hundreds more protested outside the bank’s headquarters, while 15 demonstrators staged a naked roof-top demonstration at public relations firm Edelman, which represents E.on, [...]
SkyePharma drops on drug delay September 1, 2009 Drug delivery company SkyePharma said yesterday it will need to do more tests on its asthma drug Flutiform, pushing the expected US approval out to late 2011 and sending its shares down 8.6 per cent to 103.68p. The company has been told by the US Food and Drug Administration that further tests will be required [...]
CDBcreates investment arm September 1, 2009 China Development Bank (CDB) yesterday said it had set up a $5.1bn (£3.1bn) investment arm to focus on private equity deals. CDB, which has a three per cent holding in Barclays, said the unit would provide funding for infrastructure firms, energy and resources ventures and urban projects. It is hoped that the unit will help [...]
Skype’s new owners must ring up profit September 1, 2009 OBSERVERS are questioning the $2.75bn (£1.7bn) valuation placed on Skype, the free computer-to-computer video and voice call operator, which has so far failed to wow investors despite taking a generation by storm. The service first emerged from its garage roots in 2003, and has been under the arguably careless ownership of eBay since 2005. But [...]
Daniel Stewart hit by revenues slump September 1, 2009 DANIEL Stewart, the corporate advisory and institutional stockbroking firm, saw its pre-tax full-year losses widen to £2.65m from last year’s £2m, as revenues tumbled amid the financial crisis. Revenues slumped by nearly 48 per cent to £4.3m, compared to £8.4m in 2008, despite a rise in client numbers. But chief executive Peter Shea said that [...]
RHJ raises its offer in war for GM’sOpel September 1, 2009 BELGIAN finance investor RHJ International has sweetened its offer in the ongoing bidding war with rival Magna for GM’s Opel, a spokesman for RHJ confirmed yesterday. RHJ has raised its stakes by offering €300m (£263.4m) in cash for a 50.1 per cent stake in Opel and said it would ask for only €3.2bn in state [...]
Lighting up for Paddy Power September 1, 2009 BOOKMAKER Paddy Power yesterday announced it has appointed former Channel Five chief executive Jane Lighting as a non-executive director. Lighting was ousted in April last year and succeeded by her predecessor Dawn Airey. Prior to joining the terrestrial channel Five in 2003, Lighting was chief executive of TV programmer Flextech. Lighting is also a director [...]
Budget carrier SkyEurope falls into bankruptcy September 1, 2009 SLOVAKIAN budget airline SkyEurope has filed for bankruptcy and suspended all flights, the firm said yesterday, after collapsing under the pressure of dwindling revenues in the economic slump. SkyEurope, which was launched in 2001 and served mainly continental Europe, had obtained a three-month creditor protection in Slovakia in June and was trying to restructure and [...]
Vivendi books higher profits despite slump September 1, 2009 ENTERTAINMENT giant Vivendi yesterday said consumers were staying at home in the recession, boosting sales of its pay-TV packages and video games, and helping it to report expectation-beating profits for its second quarter. The Paris-listed firm, which makes smash hit video games such as Guitar Hero, also said its French telecoms business was performing well, [...]
Lloyds secures 1bn in loan guarantees September 1, 2009 LLOYDS Banking Group has reached an agreement with the government to access £1bn of its working capital scheme. The bank, which has taken advantage of the scheme once already this year, will receive a government guarantee on half of the risk relating to a £2.2bn portfolio of short-term corporate loans. Lloyds and Royal Bank of [...]