McNulty joins Gatwick board February 5, 2013 Sir Roy McNulty, the transport stalwart who is currently deputy chair of the Olympic Delivery Authority, is joining Gatwick Airport after its chairman Sir David Rowlands steps down. Sir Roy, who will start on 1 April, has spent time on the boards of National Air Traffic Services (NATS) and the Civil Aviation Authority, and last [...]
Goldman’s O’Neill to step down February 5, 2013 THE ECONOMIST who first picked out the BRIC economies will retire from Goldman Sachs later this year. Jim O’Neill, the chairman of Goldman Sachs’ asset management division, coined the term to refer to the four markets of Brazil, Russia, India and China, which he forecast would lead a shift in the global economy. Earlier this [...]
Thomas Cook merges airlines February 5, 2013 THOMAS Cook plans to merge its German, British and Belgian airline operations, appointing a new airline management board to run the business. The world’s oldest travel group yesterday said that Condor, its German airline brand, Thomas Cook Airlines UK and Thomas Cook Airlines Belgium would become one airline segment within the group from 1 March. [...]
MPs’ concerns over pre-packs February 5, 2013 BUDGET constraints risk undermining the work of the organisation responsible for investigating insolvent companies, a group of MPs warn in a report released today. The business, innovation and skills committee said limited resources at the Insolvency Service affect its enforcement regime, sending the “the wrong message to delinquent directors”. The committee also raised concerns about [...]
Telecoms firm KPN planning a rights issue February 5, 2013 DUTCH telecoms group KPN set out plans for a €4bn rights issue yesterday, one of many debt-laden European firms expected to capitalise on surging equity markets in an attempt to avoid credit rating downgrades. KPN, in which Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim’s America Movil took a near 28 per cent stake in 2012, has along with [...]
Waterstones’ losses widen February 5, 2013 BOOKSELLER Waterstones revealed yesterday that a “disappointing sales performance” had dragged the company to a £40m loss last year, sparking fears for the future of the high street chain. HMV sold the retailer for £53m last year to Russian billionaire Alexander Mamut who put James Daunt, the founder of the eponymous books chain, in charge [...]
UBM sells £160m data services arm to Electra February 5, 2013 MEDIA and marketing services company UBM said yesterday it has received a £160m binding offer from private equity firm Electra Partners for a portfolio of its data services businesses. The deal consideration includes a £40m vendor loan note, UBM said in a statement. The businesses being sold represent a bulk of UBM’s data services operations [...]
Cab hire firm Hailo raises $30m to fuel drive into new markets February 5, 2013 TAXI app company Hailo has raised $30m to help fund launches in New York, Tokyo and other cities this year. The firm, founded by three London cab drivers in 2011, has clinched fresh funds from existing and new backers. One of the new investors is Sir Richard Branson, while Union Square Ventures is among its [...]
SABMiller buys £550m brewery assets in China February 5, 2013 SABMILLER, the world’s second-biggest brewer, is to expand further into high-growth regional markets in China after CR Snow, a local joint venture, agreed to buy Kingway Brewery assets for 5.38bn yuan (£549.7m). Asia’s $258bn (£164.7bn) beer market is growing twice as fast as the rest of the world, leading to rising competition and expectations of [...]
Randgold boss warns changing mining codes will dent finance February 5, 2013 THE CHIEF executive of blue chip gold miner Randgold Resources has warned that making changes to mining codes in African countries could stunt investment in mining companies. Speaking at the Mining Indaba conference in Cape Town, Mark Bristow said that Africa, which is rich in mineral terms, has to compete for investment with other regions [...]