Eurozone’s latest bond buying gambit gets off to a slow start October 27, 2014 THE EUROPEAN Central Bank (ECB) bought €1.7bn (£1.34bn) worth of bonds last week as it began its new purchase programme, data published yesterday reveals. The rate of purchases is slow. It would take at least six years for the ECB’s balance sheet to reach the size it was during 2012 – a target ECB president Mario [...]
London’s top tech advocate October 27, 2014 Universities are not producing the graduates needed for London’s booming tech sector. While that’s not a new problem, it is the number one issue affecting businesses in the capital, according to a private sector-led group of 1,000 so-called Tech London Advocates – including BT boss Gavin Patterson, Facebook’s EMEA vice president Nicola Mendelsohn and Lastminute.com [...]
More $1bn startups bypass the US October 27, 2014 SILICON Valley’s stranglehold of creating leading software businesses is weakening as less than 40 per cent of the 134 software companies reaching a billion-dollar valuation over the past 10 years have come from the legendary tech hub. New research, created by London-based venture capital firm Atomico, led by Skype co-founder Niklas Zennstrom, found that 82 [...]
Insurers refuse to cover new Range Rovers October 27, 2014 INSURERS are refusing to cover new Range Rovers in London after a spate of thefts of the high-end cars. Underwriters are wary of insuring the models, which cost around £100,000, unless they are parked securely and have tracking devices. Thieves have reportedly cloned keys, or used equipment to tap into the onboard diagnostic systems, to [...]
Mike Ashley to make £2m loan to Rangers FC October 27, 2014 RANGERS chief executive Graham Wallace has resigned after less than a year in the role, as the Scottish football club accepted a £2m loan from Newcastle owner Mike Ashley. In a statement issued yesterday, Rangers’ board thanked Wallace for “his contribution to the club during a difficult period”. Wallace was appointed chief executive in November [...]
Banks place leftover Mothercare shares to take haul to £100m October 27, 2014 RETAILER Mothercare raised a further slug of cash to boost its digital expansion yesterday after banks placed the leftover shares from its rights issue. The babycare specialist launched a fundraising last month to help it add a stronger online presence to its bricks-and-mortar offering. Banks underwriting the offering – Numis Securities, JP Morgan Cazenove and [...]
Condor in £6m deal with IFC October 27, 2014 MINING company Condor Gold has finalised the terms of an equity subscription agreement with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, to raise approximately £3.51m. This completes Condor’s total fundraising of £6.41m, announced in September. The remaining £2.9m was raised through a share placing on Aim. Condor stated [...]
Anglo Amercian delivers first ore October 27, 2014 MINING firm Anglo American yesterday reported the delivery of first ore on ship from its Minas-Rio iron ore project in Brazil. The first cargo of more than 80,000 tonnes of iron ore for the pellet feed market has been loaded onto a chartered vessel at the dedicated export terminal at the port of Acu in Rio [...]
Randgold shares slip in spite of new action plan at Tongon mine October 27, 2014 AN ANNOUNCEMENT by Randgold Resources stating that its Tongon mine in Cote d’Ivoire has finally turned a corner after experiencing technical difficulties failed to stop a decline in its share price yesterday. Shares fell by 1.67 per cent despite chief executive Mark Bristow claiming that the mill throughput and recovery rate, the main challenges faced by [...]
New non-exec at Standard Life October 27, 2014 SAVINGS and investment company Standard Life announced yesterday that Kevin Parry has joined the company as a non-executive director, taking up the role with immediate effect. In addition to joining the board he is now a member of Standard Life’s audit committee and its risk and capital committee. Parry’s remuneration for the role will come [...]