Small business M&A unaffected by Brexit fears August 1, 2016 Deal activity among SMEs flourished in the first half of 2016 and was higher than than the year before, despite Brexit fears. Private equity investors completed a total of 40 deals in British companies between the £10m and £100m mark in the first half of 2016, according to data released today by the Lyceum Capital [...]
After winning shareholder support, London Stock Exchange and Deutsche Boerse prepare for the real challenge July 29, 2016 The London Stock Exchange and Deutsche Boerse are preparing for a regulatory battle to force through their £21bn merger after winning shareholder support. Analysts covering the deal remain doubtful that the tie-up will pass the necessary hurdles, with particular scrutiny expected from the European Commission and the State of Hesse, where Deutsche Boerse is based. [...]
Rival exchange eyes “opportunities” from LSE merger as European opposition grows July 28, 2016 The head of pan-European exchange group Euronext has told of the growing opposition to the tie-up between the London Stock Exchange and Deutsche Boerse. Speaking to City A.M. as Euronext reported its best quarterly profits since it went public in 2014, chief executive Stephane Boujnah also indicated that his company is monitoring the situation to see “whether [...]
The iconic Empire Theatre in Leicester Square has just been sold to Cineworld July 28, 2016 The historic Empire Theatre in Leicester Square is set to be rebranded after the cinema was today sold to Cineworld. The deal sees Cineworld – the second largest cinema operator in Europe – also take on four other venues outside of London from Empire Cinemas. The Chiswick-based operator paid £94m to Empire through a combination of cash and shares as [...]
Private equity boss predicts autumn M&A activity boost for City of London July 27, 2016 The chief executive of private equity firm 3i expects the City to experience a pick-up in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity after the summer. The company’s share price was up more than two per cent to 624p on Wednesday after it reported a “solid start” to the 2016/17 year in the three months to 30 [...]
Deutsche Boerse wins shareholder approval for London Stock Exchange merger July 26, 2016 Deutsche Boerse has won the necessary level of shareholder support for its merger with the London Stock Exchange. The approval rate has now exceeded the 60 per cent set by the German stock exchange. As of 5pm German time on Tuesday, 60.35 per cent of shares had been counted as tendered. Read more: London Stock Exchange [...]
Orange SA misses expectations but gets profit boost from EE sale July 26, 2016 Orange SA – France's largest telecoms company – has posted a sharp rise in its first-half profits due to the sale of its UK network EE to BT. Net profit climbed to €3.17bn (£2.65bn) in the first half, pushed higher from the £12.5bn EE sale. Revenue also climbed thanks to strong sales growth in Spain. It rose by 2.7 per cent to €20.8bn. [...]
An extra pound a pint? Aberdeen Asset Management’s not impressed by new Megabrew offer July 26, 2016 The Megabrew deal lost its cool today, as some key shareholders revealed they were unimpressed by Anheuser-Busch InBev's latest offer for SABMiller's shares. Aberdeen Asset Management has slammed the offer, which would see AB InBev fork out £45 in cash for each SABMiller share. The new offer, which was announced earlier this morning, is an increase of £1 per [...]
Hailo to merge with MyTaxi to take on Uber July 25, 2016 Cab-hailing app Hailo is expected to announce a merger rival app MyTaxi tomorrow. The move is part of a strategic investment by Mercedes-Benz-owner Daimler – the owner of MyTaxi – it was first reported by Sky News. Hailo has been seeking further funding for some time, having had only enough cash to support itself for [...]
UK could lose £250bn in potential M&A deals after Brexit July 25, 2016 Brexit could cost the UK economy hundreds of billions in lost M&A activity over the rest of the decade, as firms hold off wheeling and dealing in the aftermath of the EU referendum. Research for lawyers Baker and McKenzie said a long-drawn out negotiation and prolonged business uncertainty could result in activity shrinking by one-third by [...]