Dutch drivers given carbon offset option at Shell pumping stations April 8, 2019 Dutch car owners will be able to offset their carbon emissions at Shell garages from next week as the oil giant launches a three-year $300m drive to flaunt its green credentials. The company said the initiative is part of a plan to reduce its net carbon footprint by between two and three percent in three years. [...]
Solarcentury closes in on potential sale worth up to £250m April 8, 2019 Solarcentury, one of the world’s biggest solar power firms, has appointed investment bank Evercore to oversee a potential sale worth as much as £250m. A source close to the firm confirmed this afternoon it was looking at potential buyers this week, with a view to a transaction later in 2019. Read more: Lightsource BP expands [...]
Santander and Barclays face lawsuits over film financing schemes April 8, 2019 Santander and Barclays are facing lawsuits from investors in failed film financing schemes. Santander could be sued for the role of legacy bank Alliance & Leicester’s role in part-funding the Imagine film financing scheme while Barclays is beng targeted over a similar scheme known as Timeless Releasing. Read more: HSBC sued for £150m in relation [...]
Gizmodo and The Onion snapped up by private equity firm Great Hill Partners April 8, 2019 US private equity firm Great Hill Partners has snapped up Gizmodo Media Group and The Onion from Spanish-language media giant Univision for an undisclosed sum. The newly-formed group, which will be renamed G/O Media, will be led by media veteran Jim Spanfeller, who previously served as chief executive of Forbes. Read more: Google hands out [...]
EU would move ‘extremely quickly’ to agree a post-Brexit customs union, says Michel Barnier April 8, 2019 The EU will move quickly to back a post-Brexit customs union with the UK if Theresa May shifts her red lines, Brussels chief negotiator has claimed. Speaking in Dublin, Michel Barnier said he hoped the cross-party talks taking place in London would produce a “positive outcome” with the prospect of a no deal Brexit now [...]
Freshfields to be investigated by legal regulator over review into UBS rape allegations April 8, 2019 Magic Circle law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer is being investigated by the legal regulator over its review into rape allegations at UBS. The City law firm was called in to conduct an independent review after a former trainee graduate alleged she was raped by a colleague nearly 20 years her senior. Read more: Former graduate [...]
Boss of British Gas owner gets £700,000 pay rise a week after hiking bills by 10 per cent April 8, 2019 The head of British Gas owner Centrica boosted his pay cheque by £740,000 last year, it has been revealed just a week after the firm upped prices for millions of customers. Iain Conn, who has led London-listed Centrica since 2015, was paid £2.42m in 2018, up from £1.68m the year before. Read more: Ofgem price cap: What [...]
Sports Direct says Debenhams has rejected £150m equity offer as pre-pack administration looms April 8, 2019 Sports Direct has said that Debenhams spurned a £150m equity offer from Mike Ashley, in a sign that the embattled retailer is inching closer towards a pre-pack administration. Read more: Debenhams shares slump as shareholders risk losing everything In a statement this afternoon Sports Direct said that the department store chain, which is set to hand ownership [...]
MPs call for investigation into Lloyds ‘cover up’ of HBOS fraud April 8, 2019 MPs have urged city regulators to investigate Lloyds Bank executives over an alleged “cover up” of fraud at its HBOS unit in Reading. The all-party parliamentary group (APPG) on fair business banking has called for a probe into whether bosses, including chief executive Antonio Horta-Osorio, breached corporate governance and conduct rules. It comes after a separate [...]
Sir Philip Green complaint against Lord Hain gets dismissed April 8, 2019 Sir Philip Green’s complaints against a peer who named him as the man at the centre of sexual harassment and racial abuse allegations were dismissed this afternoon. Read more: Top financial PR firm cuts ties with Sir Philip Green amid allegations The House of Lords standards body has dismissed a complaint from the retail tycoon [...]