Why UK M&A activity is on the rise despite Brexit vote fears August 5, 2016 Figures recently released by Thomson Reuters have shown that widespread concern about M&A activity slowing down as a result of Brexit has very much been unfounded. In the first half of 2016, as the Brexit vote loomed, M&A activity was tailing off due to uncertainty in the corporate world, and experts were warning that the [...]
Hundreds of UK jobs at risk as AB InBev announces Belgium move for SABMiller HQ August 4, 2016 Hundreds of UK jobs at SABMiller are thought to be at risk as part of the company's merger with Anheuser-Busch InBev. Budweiser maker AB InBev today confirmed the merged company's headquarters will be in Leuven, Belgium, with a functional office in New York. Read more: Megabrew: AB InBev and SABMiller expect to seal the deal in October [...]
Singapore Exchange agrees £77.6m deal for London’s Baltic Exchange August 4, 2016 The Singapore Exchange has agreed a £77.6m takeover deal for the London-based Baltic Exchange. The £160.41 per share offer has been agreed after months of exclusive discussions between the companies. The Singapore Exchange said in a statement that, as part of the deal, Baltic shareholders will also receive at least £18.80 in cash as a final dividend. [...]
Stock exchange makes commitment to London amid merger HQ doubts August 4, 2016 The London Stock Exchange has insisted the City will remain the home of its joint headquarters with Deutsche Boerse under the terms of their £21bn deal. Any changes to the location of the merged entity’s holding company, the London location of which was thrown into doubt after the UK’s Brexit vote, could not be made before the [...]
Twitter’s share price takes flight on buyout rumours August 3, 2016 Shares in micro-blogging site Twitter have jumped today on rumours former Microsoft boss Steve Ballmer and Saudi investor Prince Al-Waleed Bin-Talal could make a buyout offer for the company. Shares are up by over eight per cent in New York, climbing to $17.72 after falling as low as $15.77 in July. Twitter shares hit an all time low of [...]
ITV talked up as post-Brexit vote foreign takeover target August 3, 2016 Downton Abbey broadcaster ITV is being talked up as a foreign takeover target in the aftermath of the UK’s Brexit vote. The company, which currently has a market capitalisation of £7.8bn, has been linked by analysts with moves from the US and Europe. Alex DeGroote, a media analyst at Peel Hunt, told City A.M.: “It certainly [...]
US rival pulled out of London Stock Exchange bid because it expected Brexit vote August 3, 2016 The owner of the New York Stock Exchange pulled out of a bid for the London Stock Exchange because it was anticipating a Brexit vote, the company has revealed. The Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) announced it would not be making a bid for the LSE, which is currently in the process of merging with German exchange [...]
Here’s the windfall City advisers are in for from the ARM Softbank mega-deal August 3, 2016 A handful of top City firms will land a windfall share of the multi-million pound pot of cash being splashed on advisers to one of the biggest tech deals of the year. More than £100m is being spent on advisers to Softbank's acquisition of ARM in a £24.3bn mega-deal agreed in June. Big name banks such as Goldman Sachs and Lazard are [...]
UK’s Brexit vote expected to have global impact with fall in M&A deals August 3, 2016 The UK’s Brexit vote is expected to hit global mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity, a new study has found. Seven in 10 global dealmakers believe that while it remains uncertain when and how the UK will leave the EU, the number of global transactions will fall overall. And 67 per cent believe that Britain leaving the [...]
Bookmaker William Hill snaps up gaming software firm Grand Parade to keep up with digital shift August 2, 2016 William Hill has made moves to catch up with the gambling industry's shift to digital with the £13.6m acquisition of digital gaming software firm Grand Parades. Recently a huge amount of merger and acquisition activity has swept through the gambling sector. Paddy Power and Betfair came together in a £5bn tie-up, while Gala Coral and Ladbrokes merged in a £2.2bn [...]