UKFI mulls options on bank stakes May 18, 2009 UK Financial Investments, which manages the government’s 43.5 per cent stake in Lloyds Banking Group and 70 per cent stake in Royal Bank of Scotland, last night confirmed it was sounding out options over the sale of its stakes in the part-nationalised banks. UKFI is believed to have contacted a number of parties including mainstream UK [...]
KKR could yet pull off huge Boots coup May 18, 2009 TOGETHER with Guy Hands’ purchase of EMI, the creation and buy-out of Alliance Boots, the pharmacy-led health and beauty group, was one of the symbolic deals of the boom years. The firm was created when Alliance UniChem merged with Boots in 2006, before becoming the first FTSE 100 member to be taken private by a [...]
Shock exit for WestLB boss May 18, 2009 WESTLB chief executive Heinz Hilgert resigned yesterday following a disagreement with the German bank’s owners over how to restructure the stricken lender. The bank did not name an immediate successor for Hilgert, who had been in office since May 2008 and whose resignation was unexpected. His departure came with the bank in the midst of [...]
Martin’s future in doubt May 18, 2009 HOUSE of Commons speaker Michael Martin yesterday fought for his survival by apologising yesterday for the expenses scandal which he conceded had done terrible damage to the reputation of parliament. Martin, who faces a motion of no confidence brought by an opposition Conservative politician, sidestepped questions about his own future. But last night he appeared [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING May 18, 2009 FINANCIAL TIMESCASH-STRAPPED TOURISTS AVOID SPANISH SUNBritish tourists impoverished by the weak pound, German holiday makers worried about recession and a domestic market laid low by the sharpest economic contraction for 40 years: it would be hard to imagine a worse combination for Spain’s tourism industry as bookings in many places are down by at least [...]
Porsche to restart VW talks May 18, 2009 The family owners of Germany’s Porsche yesterday scrambled to bring stalled merger talks with Volkswagen back to life as thousands of workers at the debt-ridden sports carmaker gathered to protest against Ferdinand Piëch, VW’s chairman. Earlier VW said that constructive negotiations were not possible at the moment and urged Porsche to reduce its debt.
Morgan Stanley sells off MSCI May 18, 2009 Morgan Stanley said it is selling its remaining stake in MSCI, the investment analysis and market index company spun-off from the investment bank in 2007, triggering a 10 per cent fall in MSCI shares. The offering will consist of 27.7m shares of MSCI class A shares.
Citigroup banker joins C Suisse May 18, 2009 Citigroup last night lost one of its most senior investment bankers in Europe after Christopher Williams quit to join Credit Suisse. Williams is also one of the leading advisers to the government on its bailout of the country’s largest lenders and was global co-head of Citigroup’s financial institutions group.
Lehman estate claims sale to Barclays was too low May 18, 2009 LEHMAN Brothers’ estate claimed yesterday the fire sale of its broker-dealer and investment banking units to Barclays for $1.54bn (£1bn) was too low. It is now trying to force an investigation into whether it received enough compensation for its units. In a US court filing last night, Lehman said it believed that liabilities assumed by Barclays for [...]
Pearl’s bankers in the driving seat May 18, 2009 BANK lenders to Pearl, Hugh Osmond’s struggling insurance group, have won a significant concession in their fight not to accept a major write-off on their £3bn loans. Pearl’s bankers were recently asked to take a 40 per cent write-off on their loans as part of a £500m injection of equity from a shareholder group, Liberty. This group [...]
