Prudential seals £23bn deal for AIG’s Asian arm March 1, 2010 INSURANCE giant Prudential (PRU) has snapped up the Asian operations of US insurer AIG for £23bn in a move which will transform the company. The UK’s largest insurer has agreed to pay $25bn in cash and $10.5bn in equity. Prudential in turn will seek to tap shareholders for around $20bn and issue $5 bn of [...]
Prudential preparing for £23bn AIG Asian deal February 28, 2010 PRUDENTIAL, the largest insurer in Britain, is on the verge of an audacious takeover of the Asian operations of American International Group valued at around £23bn. The Pru would raise £15bn through a mammoth rights issue to help fund the transaction, which would transform it into the most powerful insurance player in the high-growth Far [...]
Disappointed Eley eyeing Sochi medal February 28, 2010 SHORT-TRACK speed skater Jon Eley admits he is running out of chances to deliver on his Olympic promise, after another Winter Games passed without success. Eley said nothing less than a medal would do in Vancouver after reaching the final in Torino in 2006, but has now revised his four-year plan to an eight-year mission, [...]
We’ve not under-performed insist British Olympic chiefs February 25, 2010 BRITISH Olympic Association officials have defended the performance of their team in Vancouver after admitting they would miss the three medal target set by UK Sport. Chief executive Andy Hunt was keen to accentuate the positive, underlining his point with statistics. While skeleton gold for Amy Williams represents an improvement on Shelley Rudman’s solitary silver [...]
London’s top shares tumble as oil and mining companies slip February 25, 2010 BRITAIN’S leading shares fell 1.2 per cent yesterday, sliding back in the afternoon in tandem with New York stocks, with miners and oils the main drag as commodity prices fell back pressured by a firmer US dollar. By the close, the FTSE 100 index was 64.69 points lower at 5,278.23, reversing again after Wednesday’s 0.5 [...]
A £53M CHEQUE GETS YOU THINKING February 25, 2010 WITH The Capitalist taking a well earned holiday, this ancient scribe has been ruminating over a few whimsical anecdotes that he has come across over the past 47 years in the City of London. My first recollection while learning the merchant banking ropes at Philip Hill, Higginson, Erlangers was to be sent to collect a [...]
Doing God’s work in the City February 25, 2010 LLOYD Blankfein, the chief executive of Goldman Sachs, caused a stir when he said the bank was doing “God’s work”. Well, perhaps he should meet Mark Speeks, the managing partner and co-founder of Acuity Capital, a private equity firm based in the City, who is also an assistant priest at St Botolph’s church in Aldgate. [...]
Robocop Nwume does battle again February 24, 2010 HE has seen active service in Afghanistan, lifted the Heineken Cup with London Wasps and is also a former Oxford Blue – but tomorrow Henry Nwume is embarking on his greatest challenge yet. A gruelling selection process in 2009 saw brakeman Nwume earn his place in a four-man Great Britain bobsleigh team for Vancouver. Zambian-born [...]
Canada end British curling hopes February 23, 2010 BRITISH curling skip Eve Muirhead showed glimpses of her undoubted potential but admitted it was too little, too late after she crashed out in Vancouver. The three-time world junior champion may need a few days before she can see the positives from a debut Olympics, although the 19-year-old is clearly a name for the future. [...]
Intended pay rise for HSBC boss blocked February 23, 2010 HSBC chief executive Michael Geoghegan will not see a planned 36 per cent hike in his salary this year after the bank yielded to continued protests by shareholders. The London-based bank had toldshareholders it intended to raise Geoghegan’s salary to £1.4m, it is understood, at the same time it also proposed to hike finance director [...]