Moulton among possible Unipart rescuers July 8, 2014 CAR PARTS distributor Unipart Automotive is in talks with several potential rescuers as it tries to stave off administration. The British firm has put KPMG on standby as administrator, but hopes to get a cash injection in the next few days. Jon Moulton’s investment firm, Better Capital, is among the groups in talks to invest [...]
Ex-Gowex chief Jenaro Garcia Martin turns to Kipling for staff apology July 8, 2014 JFK once said “when power leads man toward arrogance, poetry reminds him of his limitations”. Could these words have been swirling around Let’s Gowex founder Jenaro Garcia Martin’s mind when he turned to Kipling to apologise to staff on Tuesday? An email sent to staff of the insolvent Spanish Wi-Fi firm, to garner forgiveness for [...]
Barclaycard boss David Chan enjoys a very different kind of board meeting July 8, 2014 Coming up against a chess grandmaster must have been pretty nerve-wracking for Barclaycard Europe’s chief exec David Chan – lucky for him, however, he was allowed to blindfold the chess genius first. The bizarre match took place in the Houses of Parliament earlier this week in celebration of the Yes2Chess championship, an initiative developed by [...]
Monitise share price hit after revenue warning July 8, 2014 Monitise, the mobile banking and payments service, yesterday downgraded its revenue growth forecasts for the second time this year, as its business model shifted. The Aim-listed company said it expected revenue for the financial year to be between £95m and £97m, equating to revenue growth of between 31 and 33 per cent, down from its [...]
Analyst Views: What is your reaction to Monitise’s last revenue growth downgrade? July 8, 2014 BRENDAN D’SOUZA | WH IRELAND The market has been quick to punish underperformance, however the trading update is not so much a sign of a slow down but rather a more grown up attitude, as management is more cautious and looking for optimal business opportunities, focusing more on profitability, not just revenue growth. ALI FARID [...]
Lynch’s fund gives £8m to back biotech July 8, 2014 MIKE Lynch, the former Autonomy boss, yesterday backed a Swiss DNA analysis firm with an £8m investment. Sophia Genetics, which specialises in the analysis of DNA in order to diagnose patients, is the latest recipient of investment from Lynch’s $1bn technology fund. While the company specialises in preventative treatment, it also determines “where to fire [...]
Bovis sees property sales boom on back of Help-to-Buy housing scheme July 8, 2014 A boom in Britain’s property market and the government’s Help-to-Buy scheme have helped to boost house buying and have led Bovis Homes to report its best-ever first half sales. The Kent-based housebuilder announced yesterday that it had completed 1,487 sales in the six months to the end of June, a massive 54 per cent increase on the [...]
Pickles and celebs scupper plans for £160m Smithfields project July 8, 2014 Communities secretary Eric Pickles yesterday rejected as “wholly unacceptable” a £160m plan to develop London’s Smithfield market, siding instead with campaigners battling to save the site from becoming a new complex of offices, shops and restaurants. The campaign against the plans for the redevelopment of the Victorian fish and general market halls, derelict for 15 [...]
Brent crude oil price slips as Iraq supply concerns ease July 8, 2014 Brent crude fell below $110 a barrel yesterday, taking the price back to the level it was before the crisis sparked off in Iraq almost a month ago. News that Libya is set to ramp up production after rebels ended an almost year-long blockade on oil exports from two major ports put further pressure on [...]
Average London house price to hit £500k next year July 8, 2014 The average house in London is likely to cost about £500,000 in just a year’s time, according to a forecast by professional services group PwC. PwC’s latest economic forecasts, to be released today, show that the average property price in the capital is expected to reach £565,000 by the end of this decade, with its [...]