NatEx rejects Stagecoach merger plans October 28, 2009 NATIONAL Express last night ruled out a merger with Stagecoach and said that it was pressing ahead with a fundraising. The transport group said that its board and advisers had decided a merger would not offer greater value and certainty to shareholders. National Express said last week that Stagecoach had made a “highly preliminary” approach, [...]
Yell set to take 3.8bn debt restructure to court October 28, 2009 TROUBLED directories publisher Yell will today say that it is prepared to ask the courts to push through the restructuring of its £3.8bn debt mountain, after it failed to secure agreement from enough of its lenders. Yell had until 5pm last night to get the required 95 per cent support from its 300 lenders for [...]
Bodog circles government sale of theTote October 28, 2009 A POTENTIAL buyer has emerged for the Tote, just weeks after the government put the bookmaker on the block as part of plans to sell off £16bn worth of state assets to reduce the burgeoning pile of public debt. Bodog Europe – a franchise of US betting giant Bodog – is understood to be mulling [...]
Ford picks Geely as Volvo frontrunner October 27, 2009 FORD named Zhejiang Geely Holding Group as preferred bidder for its loss-making Swedish unit Volvo in what could lead to the biggest overseas acquisition by China’s fast-growing auto sector. Ford and privately owned Geely did not disclose a possible sale price for Volvo but it is thought to be closer to $2bn (£1.3bn) than the [...]
Going green in Tokyo October 27, 2009 TOKYO. I bet a good few of you reading this page will have been to this city. It’s my first time here, I’ve been itching to go for years and finally I find myself staring out of my 28th floor hotel room and across the sprawling metropolis that is Japan’s capital. In the more densely [...]
OUT OF OFFICE October 27, 2009 MOTHERLAND Having swept the awards at last year’s Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Motherland, a play recounting the true stories of women affected by the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts, is currently enjoying a three week run in London. The cast of four women play 16 different characters – mothers, daughters, wives and lovers of soldiers sent off [...]
The long arm of US litigation is reaching over the Atlantic October 27, 2009 A COURT case launched in New York this month by shareholders from England, France and the Netherlands against French media company Vivendi, alleging fraud, has struck fear into European executives worried that they too might find themselves on the receiving end of US litigation. It is rare for the American courts to allow foreign shareholders [...]
Be aware of the law if you are setting up on your own October 27, 2009 WHETHER or not the recession has come to an end is still up for debate but it is clear that, for some, the phoenix is already rising from the ashes. The latest stats indicate that the number of new applications for FSA authorisations in London over the last quarter equalled the number of cancellations, so [...]
BONUS GRAB WILL FACE LEGAL TEST October 27, 2009 PAUL LAMBDINEMPLOYMENT PARTNER AT STEVENS & BOLTON LLP THERE is growing anger in the City at the shadow chancellor’s suggestion that bonuses for this year should be limited to £2,000 in cash, with anything more paid in shares. This proposal is only possible because City bonuses are generally based upon the “discretion” of the employer. [...]
European lending takes a hit October 27, 2009 LOANS to Eurozone households and businesses fell for the first time ever in September, amplifying concerns that weak bank lending could hinder the Eurozone’s still fragile recovery. Official data from Eurostat showed that loans to the private sector fell 0.3 per cent on September 2008 – the first time this measure has dropped into negative [...]
