Ten top City of London givers December 20, 2012 MICHAEL SPENCER BROKING The Icap Charity Day celebrated its 20th anniversary this December, raising £11m for charities in the process. The annual pre-Christmas event is a celebrity-studded occasion on which all revenues and commissions from the world’s leading interdealer broker are donated. Chief executive Michael Spencer has played a major role in the success of [...]
Putting philanthropy at the top of the City’s agenda December 20, 2012 Look out your office window and you will see a “philanthroscape” – the City’s bridges, hospitals, schools, prisons, alms houses and churches we walk past everyday were built on the donations of the wealthy businessmen of yesteryear, including its most famous lord mayor Dick Whittington. The City’s rich philanthropic tradition continues today – but quietly. [...]
What the autumn statement means for property players December 20, 2012 Chancellor OF the exchequer George Osborne’s autumn statement, released last month, included a £5.5bn infrastructure package, bringing infrastructure investment to £33bn a year. The funding includes support for long-term private investment in new roads, science, free schools and academies. Osborne also opted to keep property taxes and the rate of stamp duty unchanged, something some [...]
For large home owners it’s heads I win tails you lose December 20, 2012 DIRECTOR, DOUGLAS AND GORDON Q There was a lot to read in the autumn statement. I live in a big house and need to know if I have anything to worry about. A To find out if you are going to be liable for a new levy, you will have to look at your property [...]
ICE snaps up NYSE Euronext in $8.2bn deal December 20, 2012 IncontinentalExchange (ICE) has today agreed an $8.2bn (£5bn) cash and shares deal to buy NYSE Euronext. Atlanta-based ICE will acquire the New York Stock Exchange owner to create a “premier global exchange operator” across markets including commodities, credit derivatives, equities and foreign exchange. The transaction is valued at $33.12 for each NYSE Euronext share, a [...]
Santa rally stumbles as FTSE 100 flat December 20, 2012 The Santa rally stumbled this morning, as the blue chip index remained flat in early trading, stalled by tensions in US budget talks. Yesterday, the FTSE 100 closed just four points behind the year’s highest closing mark. The ongoing Libor scandal, which continued in the spotlight for another day as two UBS traders were charged, [...]
Retail sales flat in November December 20, 2012 Retail sales were flat in November, falling below analyst expectations and a fresh sign that the economy as a whole has stalled in the final quarter. According to official data from the Office for National Statistics out this morning, retail sales were weaker than expected in November and grew only 0.9 per cent annually. The [...]
Insurers count the cost of Superstorm Sandy December 20, 2012 Two British insurers this morning said they would take a combined hit of around $300m (£185m) from Superstorm Sandy. Insurer Amlin estimated its losses from Sandy at around £145m while rival Lancashire estimated a hit of between $40m and $60m, both companies said today. Yesterday, the Lloyd’s of London insurance market said that Sandy claims [...]
Ofcom names seven 4G auction bidders December 20, 2012 Regulator Ofcom this morning announced that seven telecoms companies had qualified to bid in the forthcoming 4G mobile airwaves auction. Mobile network operators Everything Everywhere, Three, 02 owner Telefonica, Vodafone and fixed lines provider BT are among the bidders, Ofcom said. Bidders, who will be competing to acquire new capacity to roll out superfast 4G [...]
Bank of Japan boosts stimulus programme December 20, 2012 The Bank of Japan injected 10 trillion yen (£73bn) to its asset purchase programme in an attempt to revive growth, as it faces increasing pressure from the country’s next leader to beat deflation. Shinzo Abe, whose opposition Liberal Democratic Party won Sunday’s election by a landslide, has put the central bank’s independence on the line [...]