BAE takes flight in cyber security sector with $233m bid for SilverSky October 21, 2014 Defence firm BAE Systems is looking to expand into the cyber security sector with a $232.5m (£144.2m) bid for SilverSky. SilverSky, owned by US company Perimeter Internetworking, is a cloud-based security services provider with 5,500 customers in the financial services, retail, healthcare, energy, critical infrastructure and manufacturing sectors. It is focused mainly on the US [...]
Full steam ahead at Eurostar as passengers and revenue rise October 21, 2014 Eurostar has announced that both its passenger numbers and sales revenue for the year are up, the 10th consecutive year this has been the case. The rail provider is also adding new routes. 2.8m people used the high-speed service in summer 2014 compared to 2.7m the year before. Sales revenue increased from £207m to £211m, [...]
Car insurance price decline is over, says AA October 21, 2014 CAR INSURANCE premiums rose in the third quarter of 2014 for the first time since 2012, according to the latest AA British Insurance Premium Index. The index revealed that the Shoparound average quote for a comprehensive car insurance, which is an average of the five cheapest premiums found for a nationwide basket of “customers”, increased by [...]
Index expecting $10bn EU startup October 21, 2014 LONDON’S top venture capitalists expect the European startup scene to continue turning out hit tech firms, with a partner at Index Ventures predicting Europe will produce a $10bn (£6.2bn) firm within three years. “We will likely see a couple of European $10bn exits in the next two or three years. The pipeline of European companies [...]
Total mourns loss of chief exec Christophe de Margerie in plane crash tragedy October 21, 2014 French oil company Total yesterday confirmed the death of its chairman and chief executive Christophe de Margerie “with deep regret and great sadness”. De Margerie, 63, was killed at Vnukovo Airport in Moscow on Monday night, when the private plane he was on collided with a snow plough. Three crew members on the plane also [...]
Jaguar Land Rover opens new Chinese factory in bid to expand October 21, 2014 Jaguar Land Rover opened its first overseas factory yesterday, with the inauguration of the Chery Jaguar Land Rover Automotive Company plant in Changshu, just north of Shanghai. The Range Rover Evoque will be the first model built at the plant, which was created through a 10.9bn renminbi (£1.1bn) joint investment plan with Chinese company Chery [...]
Petra Diamonds may pay dividend early as profits jump October 21, 2014 Petra Diamonds yesterday announced that it was looking at paying a dividend in 2015 instead of 2016 as previously stated, after posting positive full-year results for 2014. The diamond miner reported a 20 per cent jump in revenue for the year ended June 2014, up to $478.1m (£296.3m) from $392.5m, while profit before tax was [...]
AbbVie blames “outdated” US tax law for Shire deal collapse October 21, 2014 The boss of US drugs giant AbbVie hit out at the “outdated” US tax regime after confirming the $55bn (£34bn) takeover of Shire had collapsed. Chief executive Richard Gonzalez led the charge to buy Dublin drugmaker Shire for three months, only to walk away from the deal last week blaming changes to the US tax [...]
World Cup boosts William Hill’s profit on favourable outcomes October 21, 2014 BOOKMAKER William Hill has seen its operating profit soar 89 per cent in the third quarter, with favourable sporting results playing in the group’s favour. William Hill’s revenue climbed 23 per cent, reflecting the benefits of World Cup betting and a favourable sports margin. Furthermore, the bookies’ investment in digital appears to be paying off, [...]
Cognicity Challenge: Canary Wharf Group’s £300,000 smart city startup fund October 21, 2014 Canary Wharf Group yesterday launched a startup accelerator programme to find six so-called smart city technologies – that drive cost savings using technology in fields such as transport and construction – to be piloted across its estate. The Cognicity Challenge will be spread over six sectors: integrated transportation, connected home, virtual design, construction, integrated resource [...]