Bottom third of banks facing ‘do or die’ moment, report warns October 22, 2019 More than a third of banks across the world must merge with rivals or radically restructure in order to survive any future downturn, according to a new report out this morning. Flattening yield curves, weakening consumer confidence and slowing growth in volumes and top-line revenues all pose a “do or die” moment for a large [...]
‘Legitimacy crisis’: Bank of England needs new policies and more transparency, says report October 22, 2019 The Bank of England needs major reform to maintain the public’s trust, including the creation of a credit policy and a new approach to choosing the next governor, research and campaign group Positive Money has said. Read more: Bank of England’s Mark Carney defends move not to publish governor shortlist However, some economists have pushed [...]
City Moves for 22 October – Who’s switching jobs at Acin, Publicis Groupe and Gfinity? October 22, 2019 Today’s City Moves includes Acin, Publicis Groupe and Gfinity Acin Acin, the data standards firm for non-financial risk and controls, has appointed Paul Norris as head of product of its asset management division. Paul will join Acin’s growing product team and be responsible for the development and delivery of Acin’s offering for the asset management [...]
Grant Shapps accused of ‘recycling’ year-old green number plate plan for electric cars October 22, 2019 Transport secretary Grant Schapps has come under heavy criticism for “recycling” a year-old announcement to introduce green number plates for electric cars. His department this morning asked the industry for feedback on whether to give bright green number plates to zero-emission cars, in a bid to encourage people to buy electric vehicles. However, the plan [...]
Timetable vote threatens to derail PM’s Halloween Brexit pledge October 21, 2019 A normally run-of-the-mill vote on parliamentary business today threatens to derail Boris Johnson’s last chance to get Brexit done by 31 October. A programme motion, setting out the timetable for debating the crucial Withdrawal Agreement bill (WAB), could be rejected by the alliance of opposition MPs and Tory Remainers who argue that it does not [...]
Softbank prepares to take control of Wework October 21, 2019 Softbank is reportedly planning to take control of troubled office space provider Wework. The Japanese investor, which already owns about a third of the company, plans to spend between $4bn and $5bn on new equity and existing shares, in a deal that will value Wework between $7.5bn and $8bn. Read more: Wework creates committee to [...]
Peaky Blinders maker Endemol Shine nears takeover deal October 21, 2019 Endemol Shine, the TV company that makes British TV hits such as Masterchef and Peaky Blinders, is reportedly close to a takeover by French firm Banijay. Disney and US private equity company Apollo Global Management, which jointly own Endemol Shine, are expected to close the deal with Banijay in the next few days. Read more: [...]
Sanjeev Gupta in fresh talks over British Steel bid October 21, 2019 Sanjeev Gupta is in fresh talks with the government about buying British Steel as concerns mount over a potential deal backed by Turkey’s military pension fund. Gupta’s Liberty House Group restarted discussions in recent days about a potential deal to buy the steel company ahead of the expiry date this week of an exclusivity period [...]
GSK continues pharmaceuticals push with $1.1bn vaccines sale October 21, 2019 Glaxosmithkline (GSK) has today announced the sale of two travel vaccines worth up to $1.1bn (£846.9m) to Bavarian Nordic, continuing its push into the cancer drug market. The sales of Rabipur, an anti-rabies drug, and Encipur, which is used to prevent encephalitis, to the Denmark-based biotech firm, will include an upfront payment of €301m (£258.5m), [...]
Netflix to sell a further $2bn in bonds as it builds up war chest October 21, 2019 Netflix has announced plans to sell roughly $2bn (£1.5bn) worth of bonds as it launches a final push for cash before the onslaught of new streaming rivals. The on-demand video giant said it will issue the bonds in both euros and dollars and will negotiate terms such as interest rate and maturity date with buyers. [...]