Record-busting Chemmy’s eyeing gold against all odds February 10, 2010 CHEMMY ALCOTT has talked the talk but now she must walk the walk after insisting a maiden Winter Olympic medal is within her grasp. The 27-year-old has been put through a rollercoaster of emotion, injury and funding problems since her last Olympic appearance in 2006 but is adamant the worst is behind her. First Alcott [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS February 10, 2010 Collins Stewart Christian Redman has joined the investment banking group’s wealth management division, Collins Stewart Wealth Management, as an associate director. Redman joins from Barclays Wealth, where he was responsible for managing over £450m on behalf of private clients across multiple asset classes. He has worked at Gerrard (now part of Barclays Wealth) since 1986, [...]
Investment recovery drives annual profits leap at Beazley February 9, 2010 Lloyd’s of London insurer Beazley yesterday reported a 15 per cent jump in its annual profit as rebounding financial markets fuelled a recovery in its investment returns. Dublin-based Beazley said it had a pre-tax profit for 2009 of £100.7m, up from £87.2m the previous year. The improvement partly reflected a strong recovery in the performance [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING February 8, 2010 FINANCE TIMES DE SHAW MOBILISES TEAM TO BUY DISTRESSED ASSETS OF FUND RIVALS DE Shaw, the third largest hedge fund, has established an in-house team to look at buying portfolios of distressed assets and is targeting the holdings of rival hedge funds. The DE Shaw Portfolio Acquisitions Unit, launched last year, aims to capitalise on [...]
Rudman shows a ruthless streak February 8, 2010 OLYMPIC silver medallist Shelley Rudman has vowed to keep her friends close and her enemies even closer in a bid to ruin home favourite Melissa Hollingsworth’s Vancouver Games dream. Britain’s 28-year-old skeleton star pipped her great mate and rival to second spot in Turin four years ago but has struggled to overhaul her nemesis on [...]
Steady does it as Lloyd’s of London reveals review February 7, 2010 LLOYD’S of London, the insurance and reinsurance market, will publish plans to strengthen its ties with insurance brokers today as it gears up for a profitable reporting season. In a sweeping strategic review, Lloyd’s will salute its members’ resilience in the face of the financial crisis and remark that its subscription-based model has held up [...]
Golden girls are back on the glory trail February 7, 2010 NICOLA Minichiello set her sights on Olympic gold the moment the curtain fell on the 2006 Turin Games – but with her day of destiny looming the bobsleigh star is lucky to be seeing at all. The 31-year-old former heptathlete, and partner Gillian Cooke, looked nailed on for a podium place in Vancouver after storming [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING February 3, 2010 FINANCIAL TIMES AXA PUTS SPOTLESS UP FOR SALE Spotless, the French maker of laundry and cleaning products, could become the latest “pass-the-parcel” deal between private equity groups, after Axa Private Equity put it up for sale with a €600m-€700m price tag. A recent recovery in debt markets has encouraged private equity groups to become more [...]
Doubts grow over QE end January 26, 2010 THE lower than expected economic growth figure may delay the ending of Quantitative Easing (QE), according to Citi economist Michael Saunders. “Before these data, we judged that there was little chance that QE would be extended at next week’s MPC meeting. “These data introduce considerable uncertainty, but on balance we still believe that the MPC [...]
SPORT | IN BRIEF January 26, 2010 Manchester to host Haye return BOXING: Britain’s David Haye will make the first defence of his WBA world heavyweight championship against John Ruiz in Manchester on 3 April. American Ruiz is the mandatory challenge for Haye, who clinched the title with a crushing defeat of Russian giant Nikolay Valuev in November. “It’s been 10 years [...]