3i cost pruning bears fruit for shareholders May 14, 2014 INVESTORS sent shares in UK private equity group 3i up nearly six per cent yesterday, after strong figures suggested its painful restructuring last year was beginning to pay off. 3i, which is among the UK’s oldest private equity investors, said it made a £5m operating cash profit in the year ending March 2013, reversing an [...]
Pimco hit by €22bn outflows as poor fees add to limp numbers May 14, 2014 THE WORLD’S biggest bond manager, Pimco, continued to see investors pull billions of dollars of cash from its funds last month, hitting its German owner Allianz. The California-based outfit, headed by bond guru Bill Gross, saw €22bn (£18bn) walk out the door between January and March. Although high, this was lower than the €29bn pulled [...]
Revenues grow by a quarter at Exane’s UK arm May 14, 2014 EXANE Limited, a British subsidiary of the French bank, has become the latest brokerage to report a jump in performance in the wake of a wave of activity in the equity markets. Exane’s pre-tax profits rose 19.1 per cent to almost €10.5m (£8.6m) in 2013, having slumped by 51 per cent in 2012 as a [...]
Rathbones set to smash past the £25bn fund management barrier May 14, 2014 RATHBONE Brothers, the FTSE 250 listed wealth manager, yesterday said its two recent acquisitions of fund units would boost its funds under management by 12 per cent once the deal was complete. The firm, which caters for well heeled clients, acquired Jupiter Asset Management’s private clients business and Deutsche Bank’s London wealth management team earlier [...]
Cisco shares rise in after-hours trading despite drop in revenue May 14, 2014 NETWORK equipment manufacturer Cisco Systems posted a lower-than-expected 5.5 per cent drop in quarterly revenue late last night, prompting the US giant’s shares to climb in after-hours trading. Cisco reported a net profit of $2.2bn in the third quarter, down from $2.5bn in the same period a year earlier. The company revealed revenue of $11.5bn, [...]
Football banter is back at the Bank of England May 14, 2014 FINALLY, Mark Carney has realised what we want from our esteemed Bank governors – sporting banter, natch. The Bank of England head took us all back to the days of Mervyn’s sporting analogies, in yesterday’s quarterly inflation report. “Securing the recovery is like making it through the qualifying rounds of the World Cup,” he told [...]
Are you insured for that? Lloyd’s of London staff go over the edge May 14, 2014 ANYONE strolling past the Lloyd’s of London building yesterday would have been intrigued by more than Richard Rogers’ striking architecture. Scores of the insurance hub’s staff were pouring over the edge of the building. Not like lemmings, happily; they were abseiling down. The stunt, all in aid of RedR, a disaster relief charity, saw 120 [...]
British Land warns politics a risk to recovery May 14, 2014 BRITISH Land warned that upcoming political events such as the general election posed “increasing risks” for the property market as the FTSE 100 landlord posted a jump in profits. Chief executive Chris Grigg said yesterday that uncertainty over the outcome of the 2015 elections could put off businesses and investors from investing in the sector. [...]
Development Securities agrees to buy Cathedral Group for £27m May 14, 2014 DEVELOPMENT Securities agreed yesterday to buy long-time joint venture partner Cathedral Group for £27.4m, adding nine schemes to its growing portfolio. Cathedral was founded in 1998 by chief executive Richard Upton and chairman Barry Bennett, who will join Development Securities’ board after the acquisition. It is best known for regeneration schemes such as the Old [...]
Capital & Counties raises £258m for its Covent Garden expansion May 14, 2014 CAPITAL & Counties (Capco) raised £258m through a share placing yesterday as it looks to ramp up investment in its £2.3bn Earls Court and Covent Garden estates. Proceeds from placing will help fund a £85m development between King Street and Floral Street in Covent Garden, where it plans to create a public courtyard with shops, [...]
