Heineken looks east for growth after sales miss August 22, 2012 HEINEKEN said weak sales in Europe had led to it missing profit forecasts in the first half of the year, underlying the brewer’s need to complete its deal for Tiger beer maker Asia Pacific Breweries (APB). The Dutch drinks firm – the third biggest in the world – said profit after tax fell four per [...]
London Capital’s compensation hike hurts its half-year profits August 22, 2012 ONLINE trading firm London Capital Group posted a plunge in pre-tax profits yesterday after upping the amount set aside to cover customer compensation claims by £1.9m. In February 2011, the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) ruled London Capital was liable for customer rebating errors on one of its foreign exchange platforms The spread betting firm yesterday [...]
Private equity-backed Parabis to expand using new Tesco Law August 22, 2012 INSURANCE specialist Parabis has become the first private equity-backed firm to take advantage of the so-called Tesco Law reforms, after winning a licence to use the Alternative Business Structure (ABS) yesterday. Parabis is the 20th company to be granted an ABS licence since the law market was liberalised last year. The company hopes to expand [...]
Mobile payments firm Monitise to raise £24m in AIM placing August 22, 2012 BRITISH mobile payments firm Monitise yesterday announced plans to raise £24m from a share issue aimed at existing investors. The company also said it is on track to become profitable by September 2013, three months earlier than expected. “We are in a unique position in this exciting industry and ensuring that we have a suitable [...]
Europe cuts down on drink but we’ll still pay for a decent pint August 22, 2012 YOU would think the state of the economy would have driven us all to drink a bit more, but Heineken argued yesterday that this was one of the factors to blame for its disappointing revenue from western Europe. Still, Heineken is shrugging off its European doldrums, citing wider economic issues. Instead it’s focusing on the [...]
EA’s Facebook gaming arm cuts staff as users switch to phones August 22, 2012 VIDEO game maker Electronic Arts (EA) announced yesterday its social gaming arm PopCap was cutting staff and looking at closing its office in Ireland, just a year after EA spent $1.3bn (£823m) on acquiring it. PopCap, which makes easy-to-play games for Facebook and mobile phones, said 50 people at its Seattle and Vancouver studios would be laid [...]
F&C private equity realises £27m August 22, 2012 F&C Private Equity Trust yesterday announced a 40 per cent year-on-year increase in realisations from its portfolio. The trust, which also confirmed a new dividend policy after cancelling its restricted voting shares, said distributions were £27m for the half year compared to £13m of total drawdowns. The trust’s principal exit was from Lifeways, a provider [...]
Kenmare bounces back to profit August 22, 2012 Miner Kenmare Resources yesterday reported a pre-tax profit of $38.8m (£24.6m) for the first half of the year, up from a loss of $14.2m last year. Revenues for the ilmenite and zircon miner were up 95 per cent to $109m over the first six months of the year to 30 June. Over the period Kenmare [...]
Goals Soccer Centres’ takeover fails August 22, 2012 Goals Soccer Centres’ takeover by one of Canada’s biggest pension funds fell through yesterday after shareholders narrowly rejected the offer, sending the stock down as much as 24 per cent. Goals Soccer said 71.4 per cent of independent shareholders voted in favour of the £73.1m offer. The deal needed the support of three-quarters of its [...]
Fewer deals on offer for first time buyers August 22, 2012 THE MORTGAGE market has tightened up over the past six months, but remortgage lending has bounced back, according to reports. The number of high loan-to-value (LTV) mortgages has plummeted, with a collapse in 90 per cent and 95 per cent mortgages offered, MoneySupermarket said yesterday. Its data shows that 95 per cent mortgage availability has [...]
