Creston back on track after cuts April 30, 2012 ■ Marketing firm Creston said yesterday it had bounced back after issuing a profit warning in January. It has reduced operating costs in a move to get back on track. Pre-tax profits before exceptionals in the year to March 2012 should hit forecasts while revenues were around £75m – 11 per cent up on the [...]
WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS April 30, 2012 BNY Mellon The financial services firm has appointed Peter Hazou as head of market management for treasury services, Europe, Middle East and Africa. He will report to Susan Skerritt, global head of business strategy and market solutions. Hazou joins from UniCredit, where he served as head of strategy and business development, global transaction banking. While [...]
BEST of the BROKERS April 30, 2012 RANDGOLD RESOURCES Nomura has downgraded the gold miner from “neutral” to “reduce” and cut its target price from 7115p to 6970p, surprised that despite a structural shift in political risk due to a recent coup in Mali, Randgold’s de-rating has only been generally in line with wider market sell-off. CARPHONE WAREHOUSE UBS has left its [...]
FTSE losses limited by Aberdeen April 30, 2012 The FTSE 100 was solid this morning as Aberdeen Asset Management reported a bounce back in client funds, making it the top riser. Investors have been spooked by the Eurozone crisis, which has re-emerged with the debt woes of the likes of Italy and Spain again laid bare. London’s blue chip index has also been [...]
Qatar in investment with Barclays’ resource unit April 30, 2012 Qatar has signed a deal to co-invest $250m (£153m) with Barclays’ natural resources private equity investment unit, underlining the gas-rich Gulf state’s desire to plough some of its commodity wealth back into the sector. The investments in Barclays Natural Resources Investments’ portfolio companies will be done through Qatar Asset Management Company, a joint venture between [...]
NAB to cut 1,400 UK jobs April 30, 2012 National Australia Bank will cut 1,400 jobs in the UK and take charges of $740m(£454.4m) after deciding it was too hard to sell or expand its UK banking business in a depressed market, it said as it flagged a record first-half cash profit. After a review of its UK unit, which comprises over 335 Clydesdale [...]
John Pluthero interview: The controversial telco boss on life after the C-suite April 30, 2012 Discussing abstract art with controversial executive John Pluthero is a slightly surreal experience, akin to ballroom dancing with Tony Hayward, or playing Twister with Steve Jobs. Pluthero is showing me around an exhibition he helped to curate at the Kings Place Gallery in Islington. Bright swirls of colour adorn every wall, each one accompanied by his impassioned commentary. He [...]
Aviva boss waives pay rise April 30, 2012 The chief executive of insurer Aviva, Andrew Moss, has waived his 2012 salary increase as part of a review of its executive pay policy launched in response to pressure from shareholders. The review will look at whether senior executives’ pay is justified by shareholder returns, and will also examine how much Aviva compensates executives who [...]
RBS M&A team to be spun off into boutique advisory unit April 30, 2012 Royal Bank of Scotland’s mergers and acquisitions (M&A) business will be spun off into a boutique advisory firm run by some of its current staff, the bank’s chief executive for the Middle East and Africa said. “The M&A bankers plan to form a boutique business,” Simon Penney said in Dubai. “It’s not clear as to [...]
Aberdeen profit rises April 30, 2012 Aberdeen Asset Management saw its underlying pre-tax profit rise 14 percent in its first half year after a recovery in client risk appetite boosted assets under management and the funds house improved its fee margins. The UK fund manager said in a statement on Monday its pre-tax profit rose to £162.2m in the six months [...]