Turner and King to face MPs June 17, 2009 The Treasury committee is to hold a series of new evidence sessions to take evidence on the financial crisis. Financial Services Authority (FSA) chairman Lord Adair Turner will give evidence on regulation and supervision on 23 June. The following day will see the governor of the Bank of England Mervyn King and colleagues speak on [...]
Tesco sells mortgage bond June 17, 2009 There was good news for the global securitisation market yesterday when the supermarket Tesco sold £431m of commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) supported by rental income from 12 of its UK stores and two distribution warehouses. The size of the deal, which was three times subscribed, was slightly above initial plans to sell £416m of bonds. [...]
Ocado considers London flotation by early 2010 June 17, 2009 ONLINE grocery retailer Ocado is considering an IPO, City A.M. can confirm, in a drastic u-turn by its finance director Jason Gissing. Sources close to the firm said it would use the capital from a London IPO to fund international expansion, after several foreign retailers expressed interest. It is considering floating on the stock exchange [...]
HOLD ON TO YOUR HATS June 17, 2009 THOUSANDS of racegoers braved the wind and the rain yesterday for day two of Royal Ascot. Vision D’Etat, the winner of last year’s French Derby, beat the favourite Tartan Bearer into second place in the day’s biggest race, the Prince of Wales Stakes. The event, which goes on until Saturday, attracts runners from all around [...]
CRACKDOWN June 17, 2009 BANK OF ENGLAND (BoE) governor Mervyn King last night launched his most outspoken call yet for a regulatory revolution and a crackdown on excessive risk-taking in the City. In his annual Mansion House dinner speech, King called for “instruments to prevent the size, leverage, fragility and risk of the financial system from becoming too great”. [...]
CRACKDOWN June 17, 2009 THE US financial system is headed for a groundbreaking period of reform, after President Obama unveiled his vision of a regulatory regime designed to avert new financial crises. Outlining a raft of measures he termed a “transformation on a scale not seen since the reforms that followed the Great Depression”, Obama blamed a “culture of [...]
Jilted China slates BHP’s Rio marriage June 17, 2009 CHINA slammed the proposed tie-up between mining giants Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton yesterday, saying it had “a strong monopolistic flavour,” and threatened to use its new antitrust laws to derail the venture. “The deal between Rio and BHP should be subject to Chinese anti-monopoly law,” the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said. [...]
Treasury minister quits over expenses June 17, 2009 TREASURY minister Kitty Ussher resigned from the government last night after it emerged she avoided paying £17,000 capital gains tax on her Burnley constituency home when she sold it in 2007. Ussher denied she did anything wrong, but said she was stepping aside to prevent causing the “government any embarrassment.” Ussher, a former City Minister, [...]
BAT snaps up Indonesian firm June 17, 2009 BRITISH American Tobacco has bought an 85 per cent stake in Indonesia’s fourth-largest cigarette maker by volume for $494m (£301m). BAT, maker of Dunhill and Lucky Strike, said the decision to acquire an 85 per cent stake in Bentoel Internasional Investama will give it a foothold in Indonesia’s lucrative kretek, or clove-flavoured cigarette market, which [...]
US rejects Iran meddling June 17, 2009 The US rejected claims it was interfering with the post-election tumult in Iran yesterday, saying President Barack Obama would raise concerns about, but not meddle in, Iranian politics. “As the president has said, we are not interfering with the debate that Iranians are having about their election and its aftermath,” said a State Department spokesman. [...]