SoftBank confirms creation of 1,700 UK jobs as part of £24bn Arm takeover November 3, 2016 Japan’s SoftBank will create more than 1,700 UK jobs at Cambridge-based electronic chip maker Arm following its £24bn takeover of the company. Under the terms of the deal, SoftBank will at least double the UK headcount of Arm within five years. Read more: UK tech investors are incredibly happy about Softbank's $100bn fund The Japanese lender [...]
Watch this space: UK jewellery chains put up for sale November 2, 2016 The owner of some of the UK’s best-known jewellery chains has put them up for sale. Aurum Holdings, which is owned by US-based investment firm Apollo Global Management, has reportedly begun interviewing banks as it seeks to sell Goldsmiths, Mappin & Webb and Watches of Switzerland. Read more: Siran Manoukian on the inspiration for her [...]
How much did Twitter acquire Magic Pony for? November 2, 2016 Twitter caused a stir last year, buying up a nearly unknown startup from London working on artificial intelligence technology, in a surprise deal that signalled the status of the UK as a leader in AI. Magic Pony was snapped up for a reported $150m, back in June. Twitter reported spending $85.2m on two acquisitions since the start of the year, [...]
Franchise Brands just splashed out £1m on a dog sitting business November 1, 2016 Looking after man's best friend is far more lucrative than you might think. In fact, it's a near-million pound business in the UK… Barking Mad, a company operating 71 dog-sitting franchises across the UK, has been snaffled up by Aim-quoted Franchise Brands in a deal that values the company at £900,000. Read more: Meet the companies preparing to [...]
October was a mega month for global M&A thanks to AT&T, BAT and Qualcomm October 31, 2016 AT&T, British American Tobacco (BAT) and US wireless technology company Qualcomm helped drive October to become one of the biggest on record for global mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity. More than $500bn worth of deals were announced in October, with US companies particularly active despite the upcoming US presidential election. Read more: US presidential election: There's [...]
Green Investment Bank takes another step towards £2bn privatisation, with Macquarie in poll position October 31, 2016 The Green Investment Bank (GIB) has taken another step towards its £2bn privatisation today. Australian investment bank Macquarie is believed to be the government’s preferred bidder for GIB, beating competition from a consortium headed up by Sustainable Development Capital (SDC). Read more: Branson laments total sale of Green Investment Bank The GIB today announced the [...]
AB InBev’s not toasting Brazil as brewer posts drop in profit and cuts revenue forecast October 28, 2016 Anheuser-Busch InBev has been celebrating the £79bn takeover of SABMiller earlier this month, but Brazil spoiled the party for its third quarter results. The world's biggest brewer reported a surprise drop in third-quarter profit and cut its revenue forecast. And it's all Brazil's fault apparently – one of the brewer's most important markets. Read more: AB InBev shares [...]
US private equity firm eyeing UK investment opportunities as sterling value falls October 26, 2016 JZ Capital Partners, a US private equity company listed in London, is eyeing investment opportunities in the UK, with the fall in sterling making assets cheaper. The company’s share price rose by more than one per cent today to 518p after it reported a net asset value (NAV) of $873m (£714m), up from $851.7m, for [...]
Syngenta shares begin to recover as chief exec eases regulatory fears over ChemChina deal October 25, 2016 ChemChina and Syngenta remain confident that their $43bn (£35bn) deal will close despite regulatory doubts, Swiss company’s chief executive has said. Concerns around China’s biggest ever foreign acquisition arose this week after the European Commission said it had not been offered concessions by the companies by the 21 October deadline. Syngenta’s share price fell nine per [...]
3i sells debt business as part of strategic focus away from credit October 25, 2016 Alternative asset manager Investcorp has snapped up venture capital group 3i's global credit business for £222m. Purchasing 3i Debt Management (3iDM), a business with $12bn of assets under management, will almost double Investcorp's portfolio. Simon Borrows, the chief exec of 3i explained that although the debt management business provided strong cash flows, strategically it was no longer the best fit for the group. [...]