A very happy Monday for Sir Bob September 16, 2013 THE LATEST big name to receive the Freedom of the City of London is crooner Sir Bob Geldof. The 61-year-old singer was at the Guildhall yesterday picking up his framed parchment certificate. He was also given the customary Rules for the Conduct of Life book by Chamberlain of London Chris Bilsland, despite protestations by Sir [...]
Danske Bank’s boss ousted by board directors September 16, 2013 THE BOARD of Denmark’s biggest bank Danske Bank overthrew its chief executive yesterday in a boardroom coup, swapping him for someone with “stronger qualifications” in banking. Former boss Eivind Kolding, who took the helm of the Danish bank just nineteen months ago, has been replaced by the company’s corporate banking guru Thomas Borgen, a member [...]
Early Twitter investor plans to retain stake September 16, 2013 SAUDI investor Prince Alwaleed bin Talal has called his stake in social network Twitter a “strategic investment” that he intends to hold on to when it floats. “We believe that it is just beginning to touch the surface. We have invested $300m (£188m) in the company. We will be selling zero, nothing, at the IPO,” [...]
Accountancy regulator to probe PwC audit of Berkeley last year September 16, 2013 THE UK accounting watchdog said yesterday it has opened an investigation into whether PwC was acting independently when it checked the books of UK house builder Berkeley Group. The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) said that the probe would look at PwC’s audit of Berkeley’s financial statements for the year ended 30 April 2012, as a [...]
First is fined for trapped passengers September 16, 2013 First Capital Connect was yesterday fined £75,000 for leaving passengers trapped for three hours on a broken down train at Dock Junction. The company had earlier pleaded guilty to breaching health and safety law. Passengers on the Brighton to Bedford train during the evening rush our on 26 May 2011 phoned National Rail Enquiries to [...]
Grafton shifts listing to London September 16, 2013 Home improvement and building supplies group Grafton said yesterday it will switch its primary listing to the London Stock Exchange next month. Grafton units will cease trading on the Irish stock exchange on 15 October and will trade solely on the London bourse, reporting its results in sterling. Its decision was prompted by a fall [...]
Bombardier jet makes first flight September 16, 2013 Bombardier’s CSeries jetliner successfully completed its first flight yesterday, a key step in a £2.14bn programme to develop the first all-new narrow-body plane of its size in decades that the firm hopes will increase sales. But the jet still faces an ambitious, 12-month deadline to start carrying commercial passengers.
Shore Capital enjoys a bumper six months September 16, 2013 INVESTMENT company Shore Capital Group, the third largest market marker on the London Stock Exchange, yesterday posted a thumping increase in half year pre-tax profits. The group, set up by Howard Shore in 1985, said bottom line profit rose by more than a third to £2.9m from £2.2m. Including the impact of a German telecom [...]
Pru gets green light to shift its Hong Kong arm September 16, 2013 BRITISH insurer Prudential will press ahead with the separation of its Hong Kong business from the UK parent company at the start of 2014 after gaining legal clearance for the move. Prudential said in a statement yesterday that courts in Hong Kong and London have approved a timetable for so-called domestication of the business that [...]
Cayenne alters its investments September 16, 2013 THE CAYENNE Trust, the listed fund of funds, yesterday revealed a small reshuffle of its portfolio after posting a total return to its investors of 8.6 per cent. The trust, which is listed on the FTSE, said it had cut its holdings in special situations funds Utilico Investments and Hansa Trust after becoming “frustrated” with [...]