Lehman’s PwC fees near record October 19, 2009 Accountancy fees and legal fees for the winding-up of Lehman Brothers in Europe are nearing record highs for fees charged on this continent. PricewaterhouseCoopers said it charged £154m in fees for work on the company just in its first year on the case. And law firm Linklaters has run up £68.9m in fees to 14 [...]
Apple given boost by new iPhone sales October 19, 2009 SURGING iPhone and iMac sales helped technology giant Apple defy the recession in the three months to September, it said last night, leaving high-profile chief executive Steve Jobs “thrilled”. Computer sales were up 17 per cent, and iPhone sales climbed seven per cent, helping profits surge to $1.67bn (£1bn) – or $1.82 per share – [...]
Iceland to repay lost deposit money October 19, 2009 Iceland has agreed to a new deal to repay the UK and the Netherlands billions of pounds of deposits lost when the island’s banks collapsed in 2008, paving the way for new aid from international lenders. Iceland passed a law in August to repay money lost in high-interest Icesave accounts, but the UK and the [...]
Barclays’ Diamond snubs top job interview with Bank of America October 19, 2009 BARCLAYS Capital president Bob Diamond snubbed an opportunity to be interviewed for the top job at Bank of America (BoA), City A.M. can confirm. Diamond was approached by BoA’s board and asked if he would be interested in replacing outgoing chief executive Kenneth Lewis. But he refused because “he’s got a great opportunity where he [...]
Boris lashes out at banks and bonuses October 19, 2009 AFTER Boris Johnson, by his own admission “the last politician in the country willing to stick up for the bankers”, finally turned his back on the industry yesterday in a blistering attack in his Telegraph column, the City must feel truly deserted. Of course, the Mayor himself claims this isn’t a policy departure, merely a [...]
Dutch lenders hit as DSB Bank goes bankrupt October 19, 2009 A Dutch court last night declared aggressive mortgage lender DSB Bank bankrupt, leaving other Dutch lenders liable for up to €3.25bn (£2.96bn) in deposit guarantees. The finance ministry rejected a last-minute rescue proposal that included a €100m injection of government cash because of the risk it would disappear “into a black hole”. The bank’s founder [...]
CITY VIEWS: HAS THE CITY LOST ITS CHAMPION? October 19, 2009 DAVID COLES ATLAS PARTNERS“Boris changes his mind every five minutes. He is now simply jumping on the bandwagon of bashing the banks. But, who knows? Next week he might change his tune again. The City doesn’t take much notice of the London Mayor anyway – but Boris is a fickle character.” CARLOS PEREZGROVAS DAIWA SECURITIES“I [...]
US FINANCIALS BEAT EUROPE FOR GROWTH October 19, 2009 THE US cemented its dominance in financial markets in 2008 at the expense of Europe, according to the International Financial Services London (IFSL) annual report. The Financial Market Trends Europe vs US report showed that the US financial markets had increased in size compared to Europe across eight different indicators, such as foreign equity trading, [...]
Billionaire Carl Icahn says he offered a $6bn loan to stricken US lender CIT October 19, 2009 Corporate raider Carl Icahn said he offered to underwrite a $6bn (£3.7bn) loan to CIT Group and complained that trading between the troubled lender and its largest creditors was harming other bondholders. In a letter to CIT’s board yesterday, Icahn said the cash-strapped commercial lender is offering certain large bondholders the opportunity to purchase $6bn [...]
MORE DELAYS FOR HERITAGE October 19, 2009 HERITAGE Oil’s planned merger with Turkey’s Genel Energy has been delayed again, as the Kurdistan Regional government – which will hold 20 per cent of the merged company – is taking longer than expected to elect a new cabinet to sign off on the deal. But the company said it still hopes to close the [...]
