Barclays CEO on the future of the City: ‘Forget Frankfurt and Paris’ February 5, 2021 Jes Staley, the CEO of Barclays, has said the UK financial services industry should focus on competing with the US and Asia, rather than the EU. Staley reportedly said that although jobs that would have been created in the Square Mile may have been moved to the EU, Brexit has given one of the UK’s [...]
Pub chain and Hobgoblin brewer Marston’s rejects £690m takeover offer from US private equity giant February 1, 2021 Pub chain and Hobgoblin brewer Marston's rejects £690m takeover offer from Platinum Equity Advisors
LSE chief executive says ‘blank cheque’ companies could boost post-Brexit London January 29, 2021 London Stock Exchange Chief Executive David Schwimmer said today: “Britain should replicate New York’s success in listing “blank cheque” companies to boost the City of London’s attractiveness as a global financial centre after Brexit.” “SPACs clearly have taken off in the U.S. markets. There is increasing curiosity and potential interest in seeing more of them [...]
Rotherham steelworks owner Liberty Steel puts in new bid for Thyssenkrupp January 25, 2021 Liberty Steel has put in a fresh takeover offer for a unit of Thyssenkrupp
Financial services M&A dips as management shifts priorities January 12, 2021 M&A in the UK’s financial services industry dropped amid the pandemic as management’s priority shifted away from deals to the preservation of cash. The UK financial services industry announced just 136 deals in 2020 down from 211 in 2019, according to exclusive EY data. Deal activity came to a near standstill at the start of [...]
Surge in bumper deals helps UK M&A regain its mojo December 18, 2020 After a slow start to the year UK M&A has bounced back after a surge in mega deals saw activity soar 80 per cent. M&A with UK involvement has totalled £429.8bn so far this year, 80 per cent more than the value recorded in 2019 according to research by data provider Refinitiv. A staggering 21 [...]
Paddy Power owner Flutter in $4.2bn deal for FanDuel stake, sending shares higher December 3, 2020 Shares in the owner of Paddy Power and Betfair, Flutter, have jumped nearly seven per cent this afternoon on news it will buy a 37.5 per cent stake in FanDuel for $4.18bn. Around $2.1bn of that will be in cash to Fastball with the remainder received in Flutter shares. London-listed Flutter also said it will raise [...]
S&P Global agrees $44bn mega-deal for IHS Markit November 30, 2020 S&P Global has agreed a $44bn (£33bn) deal to buy data firm IHS Markit in a move that will create a new financial services giant.
Estate agent chain Connells confirms £82m Countrywide takeover bid November 23, 2020 Estate agent chain Connells has confirmed an £82m takeover bid for competitor Countrywide, saying a cash injection by private equity rival Alchemy Group would not go far enough to rescue the embattled firm. Connells said this morning that it has completed its due diligence work on Countrywide and reconfirmed its offer price of 250p per [...]
Insurer RSA’s board backs £7.2bn takeover deal November 18, 2020 British insurance giant RSA has recommended its shareholders back a £7.2bn takeover bid by groups from Canada and Denmark, in what could be one of the biggest M&A deals this year. The final bid from Canada’s Intact Financial and Denmark’s Tryg comes after two weeks of speculation, and was confirmed by RSA today. RSA has [...]