FCA hands £415k in fines to investment groups over float collusion February 21, 2019 The UK’s financial watchdog has slapped two investment management groups with fines for breaking competition rules by sharing information ahead of an initial public offering (IPO). The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) fined Hargreave Hale £306,300 and River and Mercantile Asset Management (Raman) £108,600. It said the firms had shared “strategic information”, including their intentions on pricing [...]
The rubbish revolution: How to profit from plastic policy changes February 21, 2019 It is estimated that eight million tonnes of plastic packaging end up in the world’s oceans every year. The plastic problem has jettisoned into social consciousness over recent years, helped by TV programmes like Blue Planet and Plastic Ocean. Now our lives are littered with concerns about the impact of this material on the environment. [...]
Silver prices hit Hochschild profits despite record production February 20, 2019 Hochschild saw good results last year, but struggled with the market conditions as silver prices faltered. The London-listed gold and silver miner, which operates in South America, increased gold production by two per cent to 260,000 ounces, while silver output was up three percent to nearly 20m ounces. Read more: Hochschild falls as miner sees [...]
Bitcoin set to match longest winning streak of 2018 February 20, 2019 Bitcoin is on course to match its longest winning streak of the past twelve months, gaining 10 per cent since last Wednesday. The cryptocurrency has had six consecutive days of gains – a rarity that it saw in July last year, a bright patch in a year when its value crashed by three-quarters. Prices are [...]
Shareholder reaches deal with Tanzania over Acacia Mining tax spat February 20, 2019 Acacia Mining saw the light today as its largest shareholder Barrick Gold said it had reached a proposal with the Tanzanian government over a longstanding spat. The deal would see Acacia sharing half the economic benefits of their operations in the country with the regime. Read more: Acacia boss: 'No winners' from spat with Tanzanian [...]
Interserve’s rebel shareholder Coltrane ups stake in struggling outsourcer February 20, 2019 The rebellious shareholder trying to thwart outsourcing giant Interserve’s rescue deal has upped its stake in the firm, "putting its money where its mouth is" and piling more pressure on the contractor. Coltrane Asset Management, a 27.3 per cent stakeholder which previously owned only 17.5 per cent through shares and 9.8 through other financial instruments, launched [...]
Why investors should beware increasingly unforgiving debt markets February 20, 2019 | City Talk Last year may have been a tricky one for US markets and investors but it was less so for the country’s businesses – at least, that is, to judge by the headline numbers on US companies filing for bankruptcy. According to figures from BankruptcyData.com, 58 companies totalling $52bn (£40bn) of assets declared themselves bankrupt in [...]
British Gas the fourth of the Big Six energy suppliers to boost prices after Ofgem’s price cap February 19, 2019 British Gas, the country's biggest energy supplier, becomes the fourth of the Big Six energy companies to raise its prices after Ofgem, the energy regulator, increased the price cap on gas and electricity bills. Customers of British Gas can expect the standard variable tariff to increase by £117 for 3.5m customers starting 1 April. Stephen Murray, [...]
BHP profits slump after mining production outages February 19, 2019 Mining giant BHP reported an eight per cent slip in profits in its half-year results this morning due to unplanned production outages. Underlying attributable profit was $3.7bn (£2.86bn) in the six months to the end of December 2018 the company said. Read more: Derailed train punches $600m hole in miner BHP's books Productivity guidance is [...]
Beyond the bottom line: UK asset managers aren’t ready for new stewardship rules – should we be worried? February 19, 2019 From questionable corporate incentives to excessive risk-taking, there were plenty of red flags that should have warned asset managers of the impending financial crisis in 2008. And yet, many turned a blind eye, ultimately choosing to risk people’s pension savings for the sake of short-term gains. Since then, codes of practice have been introduced around [...]