Grand Theft bid war is painful for publishers September 22, 2013 MERGERS always come with a certain amount of problems, but The Capitalist has heard that the recent £2.4bn merger of Pearson’s Penguin and Bertelsmann’s Random House left publishing executives at the two firms kicking themselves over a major book deal. Penguin paid a substantial six figure sum for the exclusive rights to produce the strategy [...]
Stockbrokers get socked at Boodles Boxing Ball September 22, 2013 TO MAYFAIR on Saturday evening for the biennial Boodles Boxing Ball, this year held at the Grosvenor House hotel. There were several City-based amateur boxers doing the rounds in the ring and helping raise £200,000 for children’s charity Starlight. Sir Richard Branson’s son-in-law, shipbroker Fred Andrewes, took down Investec’s Adam Bidwell while Balthazar Fabricius, founder [...]
China’s Bo Xilai is jailed for life for corruption September 22, 2013 A CHINESE court sentenced ousted senior politician Bo Xilai to life in jail yesterday after finding him guilty of corruption and abuse of power, a tough term that gives him little chance of staging a political comeback. Bo was a rising star in China’s leadership circles and cultivated a loyal following through his charisma and [...]
Harvard launches fundraising campaign for research and aid September 22, 2013 HARVARD, the richest university in America, said this weekend it would seek to raise some $6.5bn (£4.12bn) in donations to fund new academic initiatives and bolster its financial aid programme. The fundraising drive by the Cambridge, Massachusetts, institution is the university’s biggest and believed to be the most ambitious ever undertaken by a university, ahead [...]
Lord Triesman hired as director of merchant bank Salamanca September 22, 2013 MERCHANT bank Salamanca Group yesterday said it has hired Lord Triesman as a director, effective immediately. David Triesman, who was formerly chairman of the Football Association, will be responsible for managing client relationships and developing business opportunities in his new role, with a particular focus on Africa and Europe. He is currently shadow spokesperson for [...]
Soros goes for third time lucky with marriage September 22, 2013 GEORGE Soros, the 83-year-old billionaire investor, philanthropist and active supporter of liberal political causes, married health care and education consultant Tamiko Bolton at the weekend. Soros and Bolton, 42, exchanged vows in a small ceremony at his Bedford, New York, estate, which Soros bought in 2003 from Jurassic Park author Michael Crichton. Federal judge Kimba [...]
Taxes paid by Glencore’s chief executive handed on to charity September 22, 2013 VOTERS in a small Swiss town decided yesterday to donate SwFr110,000 (£75,435) of taxes paid by GlencoreXstrata chief executive Ivan Glasenberg to charity in a protest against the commodities giant’s business practices. Voters in Hedingen, a town of around 3,500 inhabitants in the canton of Zurich, backed by 764 to 662 an initiative to donate [...]
City Moves for 23 September 2013 | Who’s switching jobs September 22, 2013 Savills The property company has recruited Brian Gaffney as a director and head of property management in Belfast. Gaffney has over 15 years’ industry experience. He joins from Colliers International, where he was head of its property management division. Standard Chartered The bank has announced two appointments to build its legal, compliance and regulatory programmes. [...]
Best of the Brokers for 23 September 2013 September 22, 2013 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com COMPASS Panmure Gordon has maintained its “hold” stance and target price of 820p on the food group ahead of its fourth quarter trading update on Thursday, saying that limited M&A activity over the course of the yearmeans there is potential to return some [...]
London Report: House prices set to show strong recovery signs September 22, 2013 HOUSE price data set to be released this week is likely to show a strong month-on-month rise for September, pushing the annual increase to a three-year high. The boost, shown in Nationwide data, reflects stronger consumer confidence and a higher employment rate, but is also likely to highlight the dangers of a possible house price [...]