Fancy a taste of James’ Britpop? January 12, 2014 CAN YOU remember what 1993 tasted like? Well, if you’re curious, Blur bassist-cum-cheese wizard Alex James has applied to trademark a new drink – called Britpop. The application doesn’t give away any clues as to what the drink will taste like but we can just imagine the Cool Britannia branding now. It’s not the first [...]
Three things you didn’t know about… January 12, 2014 Chief exec of ACPI Investment Managers Brett Lankester 1 His strengths don’t just lie in asset management. This former Goldman Sachs-er won a local arm wrestling competition in his native South Africa back in 1992. “It’s all in the technique,” he told The Capitalist. 2 Not content with the traditional dogs and cats Lankester’s itinerary [...]
Spirits at the Sign on the Don? January 12, 2014 CITY revellers searching for a historical tipple can now add another venue to their hit list. The owners of The Sign of the Don restaurant have restored a 30 metre, 200-year-old vault underneath its restaurant, creating a cellar and space for a handful of punters to enjoy a drink. “The project has been fantastic but [...]
China not a top M&A target for FTSE 100 firms January 12, 2014 CHINA is not ranked among the top mergers and acquisitions (M&A) investment destinations for FTSE 100 companies over the past decade, according to research out today from international law firm Freshfields. Of the £391.5bn of total M&A investment by FTSE 100 companies between 2003 and 2013, the top 10 countries attracted over 81 per cent [...]
Hotels back on investors’ lists as transactions reach six-year high January 12, 2014 HOTELS are back in vogue with investors, according to research out yesterday by Deloitte, which shows that hotel deals in 2013 were at their highest in six years. UK hotel transactions totalled around £800m in the second half of 2013, up 66 per cent on the same period last year and taking deals for the [...]
Activist to pitch breakup plan to First’s investors January 12, 2014 AN INVESTOR pushing for change at FirstGroup will try to sell his break-up plan to other shareholders this week, paving the way for a heated capital markets day later in the month. Thomas Sandell, whose hedge fund revealed a three per cent stake in FirstGroup in November, will this week be in London to set [...]
Hall & Woodhouse receives £20m loan from M&G Investments fund January 12, 2014 INDEPENDENT brewer Hall & Woodhouse has received a £20m loan from M&G Investments as part of the fund’s effort to support mid-sized UK firms. Hall & Woodhouse, a regional brewer and owner of over 200 public houses, has over 1,400 employees in the UK and is looking to use the 10-year investment to acquire and [...]
Saudi British Bank fourth quarter net profit jumps by 20 per cent January 12, 2014 SAUDI British Bank, Saudi Arabia’s fourth-largest listed bank, said yesterday its fourth-quarter net profit rose 20 per cent over the same period of 2012, beating analyst expectations. The lender, an affiliate of HSBC Holdings, said it made 976m riyals (£157.8m) in the three months to 31 December, compared to 815m riyals in the corresponding period [...]
Actual Experience prepares a £17m London public offering January 12, 2014 ANALYTICS firm Actual Experience Limited is planning an initial public offering (IPO) on London’s Alternative Investment Market at the end of the month that is set to value the company at £17m. Actual Experience (AE) works with over 40 blue-chip clients including Cisco, Ofcom and Accenture to improve the experience of staff and customers using [...]
City Moves for 13 January 2014 | Who’s switching jobs January 12, 2014 Smith & Williamson The accountancy and wealth management group has announced the appointment of Tina Riches as national tax partner. She was most recently at the Chartered Institute of Taxation, where she was a technical director. Royal Bank of Canada The bank has recruited Tim Houghton as head of business development in its wealth management [...]
