Inmarsat and Viasat £5.4bn merger paused until CMA wraps up probe August 9, 2022 The £5.4bn takeover of British satellite giant Inmarsat by US rival Viasat has been put on hold until the UK’s competition watchdog completes a probe into the merger. The Competition and Markets Authority today officially launched an inquiry into the merger, having invited onlookers for comment in late July. The regulator will have until 5 [...]
Avast operating profit sink ahead of £7bn takeover August 9, 2022 Antivirus software giant Avast’s operating profit has sunk so far this year, as it looks set for a takeover by fellow cybersecurity heavyweight NortonLifeLock. Operating profit plunged by $54.2m (£44.8m), from $226.7m (£187.6m) to $172.6m ($142.8m), which bosses said had been driven by higher exceptional and other costs. While revenue inched 0.2 per cent higher [...]
BioNTech’s Covid-19 vaccine boosts revenue to £8bn so far this year August 8, 2022 BioNtech, the company which worked with Pfizer to develop its famed Covid-19 vaccine, has reported €9.6bn (£8bn) worth of revenue so far this year. The Germany pharmaceutical giant snagged €3.2bn (£2.6bn) in revenue in the second quarter of this year, the company reported today. In a call today, CEO Uğur Şahin said the results [...]
Pfizer buys Global Blood Therapeutics for £4.4bn in Covid cash spending spree August 8, 2022 Pfizer has bought Global Blood Therapeutics for $5.4bn (£4.4bn), as the US pharmaceutical giant continues its Covid-19 cash spending spree. The deal will strengthen Pfizer’s sickle cell disease expertise, with bosses eyeing combined worldwide sales of more than $3bn (£2.4bn). CEO and chairman Albert Bourla said: “Sickle cell disease is the most common inherited blood [...]
US-China Taiwan tensions could choke off chip supply, Intel exec warns August 7, 2022 Hostilities between the US and China over Taiwan could choke off the global supply of electronics like mobile phones, the European chief of chipmaker Intel has warned.
Twitter takeover should go ahead if it coughs up proof of accounts, Musk says August 6, 2022 Elon Musk has revived hopes that his Twitter takeover may go ahead after writing the deal should proceed “on its original terms” if the social media site provides its method for confirming accounts are genuine.
Electric dreams: Volt founder on the rise and rise of the electric bike August 5, 2022 Between the oven-like temperatures on the tube, the promise of rail strikes stretching into infinity and the ever-present threat of another airborne pandemic, things are looking up for the e-bike industry. Last year saw a record 22m e-bike sales according to the Confederation of the European Bicycle Industry, a 10 per cent increase on the [...]
Satellite duo in reported merge talks amid wave of sector consolidation August 4, 2022 A pair of US and Luxembourg-based satellite giants are reportedly in talks to merge, as the increasingly scrutinised sector undergoes a wave of consolidation. SES and stateside group Intelsat are in discussions, the Financial Times first reported yesterday. People familiar with the matter stressed that talks are still in their early stages. It follows UK [...]
Alibaba posts flat revenue growth after ‘relatively slow’ spring August 4, 2022 E-commerce group Alibaba has posted flat revenue growth for the first time. The Hong-Kong based firm said sales in Chinese commerce dropped one per cent compared to the past year while revenue from its cloud business saw revenue up 16 per cent. The group’s revenue hit 205.56bn yuan ($30bn) in the April to June period, [...]
UK defence and aerospace firms risk being outpaced in STEM skills shortage August 4, 2022 The UK’s defence and aerospace sectors are continuing to be squeezed by a shortage in STEM talent, leaving ‘high-trust’ businesses vulnerable to being outpaced by overseas counterparts. The UK Commission for Employment and Skills revealed earlier this year that 43 per cent of STEM vacancies were hard to fill due to a shortage of applicants, [...]