No reason for us to investigate Royal Mail, regulator tells MPs April 28, 2014 MARTIN Wheatley, the chief executive of the financial regulator, told a committee of MPs yesterday that he sees no reason to investigate the Royal Mail sell-off, despite a National Audit Office report that revealed the UK taxpayer has lost out to the tune of £750m. Appearing before the public accounts committee yesterday, Wheatley said: “Nothing [...]
Osborne signs tax evasion deal April 28, 2014 Chancellor George Osborne has signed a deal with France, Germany, Italy and Spain to share information about offshore accounts to crack down on tax evasion. The new deal will see the five nations automatically share tax information with each other. Osborne said: “For those evading their responsibilities and hiding their money offshore the message is [...]
Flybe hires new top brass April 28, 2014 Regional airline Flybe has picked SABMiller’s financial planning head Philip de Klerk as its new chief financial officer, almost a year after the search began for a replacement for Andrew Knuckey. The firm, which hired Saad Hammad as its chief executive last August as part of its turnaround efforts, said de Klerk will join the [...]
Eurotunnel slashes track charges April 28, 2014 Eurotunnel announced yesterday that it will cut track access charges by up to 50 per cent, following an investigation by the European Commission (EC). The Chunnel operator hopes the move will help to double rail freight traffic over the next five years. According to the EC, spare capacity in the tunnel is predominantly down to [...]
Holcim says there is big interest in disposals as profits plummet April 28, 2014 SWISS cement company Holcim said yesterday that there is “huge” interest in the assets it would need to sell ahead of its merger with France’s Lafarge, as it posted a 57.5 per cent fall in first-quarter profit. The two firms announced a share-for-share deal earlier this month, which would create a self-proclaimed “merger of equals” [...]
Forecast says China on course to reach growth target for the year April 28, 2014 THE INTERNATIONAL Monetary Fund (IMF) hiked its expectation for Chinese growth in 2014 yesterday, indicating that the country will reach its target for a 7.5 per cent expansion. The forecast was increased by 0.3 percentage points from the previous estimate in October, despite poor indicators for the manufacturing sector during the first quarter of the [...]
Ovo Energy launches scheme for local communities to sell energy April 28, 2014 THE BIG six energy firms are set to face more competition, after independent supplier Ovo Energy launched a new initiative to help community groups to sell energy. Ovo will provide systems for groups such as local councils or housing associations who want to run a utility business, including billing, trading and power generation, in return [...]
Ophir Energy confirms spurned approach for rival Premier Oil April 28, 2014 OPHIR Energy yesterday confirmed it made a takeover approach for FTSE 250 peer Premier Oil, which would have created a £3bn combined oil and gas explorer, but its rival rejected the proposal. “The Ophir board believed that merging the two businesses provided the potential to create a well-funded, re-focussed, full cycle exploration and production company. [...]
Buyout shop Cinven joins forces with rivals to snap up software April 28, 2014 THE BIGGEST European-focused private equity firm in the world has taken a stake in a Nordic-based business software company. Cinven has taken a 33.1 per cent stake in Norwegian firm Visma, which makes software for around 340,000 businesses. The complex transaction will see Visma’s controlling shareholder US private equity giant KKR, which owns 76 per [...]
Spark Energy swings into profit April 28, 2014 Spark Energy, a specialist energy supplier for tenants, yesterday said it had swung into profit for the first time, as it more than doubled its customer base. The firm made profits of £337,469, while revenue rose 126 per cent to £40.7m. It supplies 100,000 rented properties throughout the UK. Spark boss Chris Gauld said substantial [...]
