France green-lights bank giant June 9, 2009 France’s parliament yesterday cleared the way for the creation of France’s second-biggest bank by approving a merger of the groups Caisse d’Epargne and Banque Populaire. The new bank will have a total 7,700 branches and 34m customers and could be up and running by July. Lawmakers in the upper house Senate approved the move by [...]
Never again must banks ask for handouts June 9, 2009 IT is great news that 10 US banks have been given the green light to reprivatise themselves by paying back $68bn in Tarp bailout money. This is a milestone in the financial crisis; not only are banks raising their own equity privately again but they are also issuing long-term debt that isn’t guaranteed by the [...]
Saad sell-off spooks City June 9, 2009 SHARES in Berkeley Group fell by 5.2 per cent yesterday after Saad Group sold nearly half its stake in the construction company, heightening concerns over the future of the Saudi investment firm’s other holdings. Saad, which held 28.5 per cent of Berkeley at the end of April, sold 16m of shares at a discounted 701p [...]
BlackRock nears BGI takeover June 9, 2009 BLACKROCK looks set to seal the deal to buy Barclays Global Investors (BGI) as early as today, sources say. The deal would merge the two giant firms to create the world’s biggest money manager. The US bank is expected to pay Barclays up to $13bn (£8.1bn) in a mixture of cash and shares. It is [...]
CITY VIEWS: ARE LONDON UNDERGROUND STAFF WRONG TO STAGE A STRIKE? June 9, 2009 CHRISTIAN DAVIS BP“It’s a complete joke. I’ve had to swallow a pay cut, take it or leave it. They’re just throwing their weight around because they can shut down London.” PAUL MARTIN LONDON METAL EXCHANGE“They are holding London to ransom, when there’s a big football match at Wembley tomorrow evening. It’s bully-boy tactics by the [...]
Lloyds in talks to sell part of fund business June 9, 2009 LLOYDS Banking Group is thought to be in negotiations to sell part of the fund management arm it acquired when it merged with HBOS last year for up to £300m in a private equity-backed management buyout. Abdallah Nauphal, the former chief executive of Insight Investment Management and managing director of asset management at Lloyds, is [...]
Govia wins rail franchise contract June 9, 2009 Govia has won a six year extension of its South Central rail franchise, which provides services going out of London, by promising longer commuter trains and more frequent services. The Department for Transport said the new franchise agreement, which runs from September until July 2015, could be extended by a further two years at its [...]
Crossrail causes Oxford St closure June 9, 2009 Retailers are up in arms after Transport for London (TfL) confirmed yesterday that a large stretch of Oxford Street is to be closed for work on the £16bn Crossrail project. The street will be closed to east-bound traffic between Newham Street and Tottenham Court Road, while construction workers replace and repair the ancient water and [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING June 9, 2009 FINANCIAL TIMES MALAYSIA’S GENTING BUYS 3.2 PER CENT STAKE IN MGM UNITGenting, the Malaysian gaming group, has paid $100m for a 3.2 per cent stake in MGM Mirage, firming a relationship that could help pave the way for future deals in Macao and the US. Genting matched the $100m that Kirk Kerkorian, MGM Mirage’s largest [...]
Brown to unveil voting reform June 9, 2009 Prime Minister Gordon Brown will today propose a dramatic reform of the voting system as he seeks to cling on to power. The first-past-the-post voting system could be replaced with a so-called alternative vote or AV system in which voters list their preferences rather than simply voting for one candidate. Brown will also tell MPs [...]
