Ofcom says BT merger with EE could harm other mobile firms July 19, 2015 Telecoms giant BT could be facing double trouble from the industry regulator, after Ofcom revealed concerns surrounding its proposed merger with mobile network EE. The planned £12.5bn takeover is being probed by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which issued an update regarding the scope of its investigation at the end of last week. Ofcom [...]
Gaucho steak restaurant deal on the table amid flurry of sales in industry July 19, 2015 The Gaucho chain of steak restaurants, popular with hungry City workers, is up for sale. Bankers at Canaccord Genuity have been hired to work on the sale, with private equity firm ICG and Dutch entrepreneur Zeev Godik hoping to raise up to £150m. The industry has been ripe for deals in recent times, with brands [...]
BAE Systems on hunt for exports and replacement for Ian King July 19, 2015 Defence company BAE Systems is on the lookout for a new leader, but is yet to launch a formal recruitment process. The group is considering its options to replace current chief executive Ian King. A spokesperson for the company said yesterday: “We have not launched a formal succession process; we are simply scanning [...]
Afren’s future hangs in balance after Luxembourg suspension July 19, 2015 Oil firm Afren is facing an uncertain future as shareholders prepare to vote on the proposed financial restructuring of the company. The group is due to meet next week in order to establish its next move, having suffered a series of setbacks over the past 12 months. Trading on the London Stock Exchange [...]
Anglo American lowers the bar for chief executive Mark Cutifani July 19, 2015 Mining group Anglo American has lowered the bar at which chief executive Mark Cutifani reaches his performance targets, a controversial move as shares in the company this month fell to a 12-year low. Cutifani, who was paid £3.7m last year, makes around half of his yearly take-home pay through a long-term incentive plan (LTIP) based [...]
Oxford Street flagship John Lewis home unit to reopen after £14m makeover July 19, 2015 After eight months of closure and a £14m makeover, John Lewis’ home department at its flagship store is set to reopen to the public. The Oxford Street department store will open the doors to its updated home section in September, having added several new features including a “rug gallery” exclusive to the store. John Lewis [...]
Ladbrokes eyes up a quick move for Gala Coral July 19, 2015 Ladbrokes could strike a deal with online bingo company Gala Coral as early as this week, creating a high-street and internet gambling empire. Ladbrokes, valued at £1.2bn, is expected to issue new shares to buy Gala, which is owned by a collective of private equity investors including Apollo Global Management, Candover Investments and Cerberus [...]
Ikea promises to adopt the living wage for its 9,000 UK employees July 19, 2015 Home furnishing giant Ikea yesterday pledged to adopt the living wage from 1 April next year – a move that will affect more than half its 9,000 UK staff. Describing the pay increase as “part of a holistic transformation of basic co-worker conditions”, Ikea said UK employees will receive a minimum of £7.85 per hour [...]
Retail veteran Browett joining Octopus board as non-executive July 19, 2015 Retail guru John Browett has been appointed to the board of fund manager Octopus Investments as non-executive director. Browett, best known for heading Dixons Retail for five years between 2007 and 2012, is currently the boss of homewares store Dunelm. He also had stints as chief executive of Monsoon Accessorize, boss of Tesco’s online arm [...]
Eurozone investor sentiment collapses as investors flock to “safe havens” of gold and UK government bonds July 19, 2015 Eurozone shares have had the largest annual decline in sentiment on record, dropping 19 percentage points in just a month. New figures from Lloyds show investors’ sentiment for Eurozone shares have crashed to -48 per cent, down 30 percentage points over the past year. Ashish Misra, head of portfolio specialists at Lloyds, said the drop [...]