Investors line up to bid for National Grid’s massive £11bn gas pipeline February 21, 2016 Investors are teaming up to bid for a controlling stake in National Grid’s £11bn gas pipeline arm that was put on sale last year. The consortium includes Canada’s Borealis Infrastructure; the Universities Superannuation Scheme, and Wren House, an arm of Kuwait’s sovereign wealth fund. Bankers at Rothschild and Citi have been recruited as advisors, the [...]
Telecommunications giant BT expected to avoid being broken up from Openreach, in verdict due this Thursday February 21, 2016 BT is expected to avoid having its infrastructure arm Openreach carved out this week, following months of campaigning for a split by the company’s rivals. City A.M. understands the decision will be announced on Thursday in Ofcom’s Digital Communications Review, though will reportedly include requirements for minimum-service standards between Openreach and BT’s rivals Vodafone, Sky, and [...]
Sainsbury’s expected to ask for more time over Home Retail Group bid as Christo Wiese’s Steinhoff International joins the party February 21, 2016 Sainsbury’s is expected to ask for an extension to tomorrow’s deadline for making a firm offer for Home Retail Group after a South African retail conglomerate waded in at the eleventh hour with a higher offer. The supermarket chain revealed earlier this month that it had reached an agreement with Home Retail over a possible cash [...]
GlaxoSmithKline suffers setback as US regulator accepts submission for a generic version of Advair, its biggest-selling product February 21, 2016 Pharmaceuticals giant GlaxoSmithKline has come under pressure after the US drug regulator said it may approve a generic version of GSK's biggest selling product next year. The US Food and Drug Administration has accepted a submission from rival GSK's rival Mylan for a cheaper copy of its asthma drug Advair. Once an application has been submitted it is [...]
Anglo American mulls sale of De Beers’ London headquarters as part of asset sell-off February 21, 2016 Anglo American is considering selling its diamond subsidiary De Beers’ headquarters in Farringdon as part of major cost-cutting plans revealed last week. The FTSE 100 miner posted a $5.4bn loss for 2015 – the largest in its history – prompting chief executive Mark Cutifani to set out an aggressive restructuring plan to boost its cash [...]
UK bank results: Standard Chartered and Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) gearing up to post losses for full-year 2015 February 21, 2016 Two of Britain’s biggest banks are expected to post sharp losses this week when they report full-year results for 2015. Analysts say Standard Chartered will report significant losses amid steep restructuring costs, while Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) pre-empted the full-year results last month when it announced a so-called clean-up plan that would hit annual [...]
Lloyds Banking Group could pay out more than £2bn in dividends to shareholders despite fears of higher costs related to PPI claims February 21, 2016 Lloyds Banking Group is reportedly getting ready to pay out more than £2bn in dividends to shareholders, despite fears of further costs related to the mis-selling of loan insurance. The Sunday Times reported today that Lloyds chief executive Antonio Horta-Osorio is attempting to convince regulators that the bailed-out bank has enough capital to afford the [...]
Media giant Time Warner eyes office move to Battersea Power Station February 19, 2016 Media and entertainment giant Time Warner has lined up five major office schemes for its new London headquarters, including Battersea Power Station. The company, which currently operates out of several London offices including Turner House in Soho, has hired agents at CBRE to find new offices spanning at least 200,000 square feet. Battersea Power Station [...]
After HSBC’s voice recognition, selfies and Tinder could soon replace your banking password February 19, 2016 Banks are often accused of being slow to innovate, opting for tried and tested methods and services over new technologies and solutions. However, when it comes to security, there is a lot that even the most innovative digital enterprises can learn from the world of finance. The media is currently buzzing with news that HSBC [...]
Barclays confirms investment bank chief executive Tom King will retire next month February 19, 2016 Tom King, the chief executive of Barclays's investment bank business, is retiring next month, the bank confirmed today. King's last day will be 4 March, according to Barclays. Commenting on his decision to retire, King said: "After nearly 25 years in my career, and having now seen the Investment Bank through a period of extraordinary change and [...]