Carried interest: London’s dealmakers bask in rare lobbying win June 17, 2025 Rachel Reeves went into the 2024 general election promising to close the “carried interest loophole” long-enjoyed by “asset stripping” private equity executives. So far, though, the sector has escaped the worst of Labour’s promised crackdown, writes Ali Lyon. For someone who once argued private equity was full of asset strippers driving beloved British businesses to [...]
DWF: Sir Nigel Knowles to retire as new CEO named June 16, 2025 Sir Nigel Knowles, the chief executive of legal services giant DWF, is to step down from the role after five years, it has been revealed. The CEO will retire from the position he has held since May 2020 on 1 August but will remain with the firm as a senior advisor. He will be succeeded [...]
Metro Bank shares soar after takeover interest from Shawbrook owner June 16, 2025 Shares in Metro bank boomed as markets opened on Monday after reports the high street lender had been approached for a takeover. The FTSE 250 bank’s stock was up nine per cent to 122.00p during early trading. On Friday, shares closed at 112.2p, giving it a market capitalisation north of £750m. This follows private equity [...]
Bargain Britain: UK firms under siege by foreign takeovers June 12, 2025 The London Stock Exchange has suffered a bruising week as private equity firms and foreign giants continue to snap up British bargains. Markets were hit with a double blow on Wednesday after Canadian consultancy giant acquired engineering firm Ricardo and KKR returned with a final bid for GP Landlord Assura. Assura has recommended a cash [...]
Private equity giant KKR returns with final bid for Assura June 11, 2025 UK healthcare property firm Assura has received its “best and final offer” from KKR, which is set to trigger another delisting blow for the London Stock Exchange. Assura has recommended a cash offer from Sana Bidco, a vehicle owned by KKR and Stonepeak, which values the firm at 52.1p per share. Shares in Assura closed [...]
WH Smith nears sale of high street chain as revenue rises June 4, 2025 WH Smith has confirmed it remains on track to sell its high street division to the owner of Hobbycraft by the end of the month. In March, the FTSE 250 company announced it had agreed to offload the arm to private equity firm Modella in a deal which valued it at £76m. When complete, the [...]
Private equity: Are the doors to the most exclusive club in town finally opening? June 4, 2025 Private equity has carved out a record as one of the best-performing assetclasses of the last 25 years – for the exclusive benefit of a privileged few. Now, at last,private investors can get in. Trillions of dollars have flowed into private equity in the past twenty-odd years. Global private capital assets under management reportedly more [...]
Blow to Thames Water as KKR pulls out of equity raise June 3, 2025 Thames Water’s battle to escape nationalisation has suffered a hammer blow after KKR withdrew its bid to acquire an equity stake in the business. The US private equity giant had been selected as a preferred partner for the debt-laden utility business as part of its efforts to raise funds, with KKR having “prepared detailed plans, [...]
Sport teams safe bets as valuations buck Trump tariff slump May 30, 2025 Valuations of sports clubs have survived “recent market volatility stemming from President Donald Trump’s tariffs”, top analysts have said amid market turmoil as a result of decisions made in the White House. Sports clubs have seen their valuations remain stable, and in some cases rise, despite huge hits elsewhere, including the manufacturing industry – due [...]
Shark Tank star Mark Cuban joins $750m private equity sports fund May 27, 2025 Star of Shark Tank and former Dallas Mavericks majority owner Mark Cuban is part of a new $750m private equity sports fund. Harbinger Sports Partners Fund will look to acquire minority stakes across a number of sports including Major League Baseball (MLB), National Football League (NFL) and National Basketball Association (NBA). Other figures included are [...]