Watchdog fines Kenneth Carver £35,000 for part in Logica insider trading scheme March 30, 2015 Former accountant Kenneth Carver was yesterday fined £35,212 by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) for his part in the Logica insider trading scheme. Carver is a family friend of recently imprisoned Ryan Willmott who pleaded guilty to three counts of insider trading during his time as a financial planning and group reporting manager for IT [...]
Newcastle United score record £19m profit thanks to TV income and new sponsorship deals March 30, 2015 Newcastle United yesterday reported record profits of £18.7m last season – but its debt in the form of an interest-free loan from owner Mike Ashley remained static at £129m. The Premier League club put the profit down to increases in TV income and new sponsorship deals. The Magpies announced a recorded profit for the fourth [...]
Rolls-Royce in $1bn Air China engine deal to supply Trent 1000 engines for passenger jets March 30, 2015 Engine manufacturer Rolls-Royce has extended its deals with Air China, after being selected to supply its Trent 1000 engines for 15 new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner passenger jets. According to the British technology firm, the new contract is worth $1bn (£675m). Previously, Rolls-Royce supplied the airline with Trent 700 engines for 49 Airbus A330 aircraft, with [...]
RBS investment bank head Rory Cullinan resigns weeks after joking it was boring on Snapchat March 30, 2015 Rory Cullinan has resigned as head of Royal Bank of Scotland's (RBS) investment bank just weeks after he was caught complaining of being bored on Snapchat. RBS had only handed the role to Cullinan at the end of last month, and had expected him to lead a major scaling back program of its investment bank [...]
Amazon is launches Home Services in the US – here are some of the most random things you can order March 30, 2015 Amazon has come a long way from starting as an online book store 20 years ago – from today, people in the US can buy professional help via its website. The e-commerce giant has launched its Home Services site, which spans 700 different services ranging from installation to rubbish disposal. Help will be on [...]
Richemont confirms talks with Yoox over Net-a-Porter takeover March 30, 2015 It turns out that Richemont, the private equity owner of Net-a-Porter, is in talks with Yoox, Net-a-Porter's Italian rival, over a possible "deal". The news follows rumours last week that Amazon was sniffing around the luxury shopping site, with a deal thought to be worth as much as €2bn (£1.47bn) on the cards. But today [...]
Quindell share price soars following news of sale to Slater & Gordon March 30, 2015 Following a lengthy "will they, won't they" back-and-forth worthy of any soap opera, Quindell has finally agreed to sell its professional services arm to law firm Slater & Gordon, with most of the proceeds to be given back to shareholders. The division accounts for around 90 per cent of the company. Quindell intends to use [...]
Alliance Trust braced for more personal attacks March 29, 2015 The battle between Alliance Trust and activist investor Elliott Advisors is set to get more tense and bitter in the coming weeks, with both sides rallying supporters ahead of next month’s annual general meeting. Elliott wants to appoint three new directors to the investment group’s board, arguing the FTSE 250 firm needs more industry experience, [...]
Crunch time for troubled Serco Group as vote on proposed rights issue looms March 29, 2015 Shareholders in troubled outsourcing firm Serco will vote today on a proposed rights issue, aimed at raising £550m. The company’s shares dipped by over 30 per cent in the hours following the announcement of its plans in November, which came along with a profit warning for 2014. Serco stated at the time that it would [...]
John Cridland to quit top lobbyist post at the CBI March 29, 2015 The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) is looking for a new boss, as its director general John Cridland plans to step down after five years at the top. The business lobby group began advertising for a replacement yesterday. Cridland has spent his entire career at the CBI, joining straight from university as a policy adviser [...]