Veteran boss of UBS funds unit quits chief exec role after 13 years December 5, 2013 UBS ASSET management yesterday reshuffled its boardroom after long-standing chairman and chief executive John Fraser announced his retirement from the frontline. The money manager, which invests more than SFr580bn (£395bn) of other people’s money, said Fraser, 62, will step down as chief executive at the end of this month but stay on as chairman. The [...]
Private equity firms shun big ticket deals for British business December 5, 2013 PRIVATE equity firms’ investment in British businesses fell 30 per cent this year, despite signs of an uptick in the economy Buyout firms spent £13.9bn buying UK firms between January and November, down on the £20.4bn spent in the same period in 2012. The figures, from Mergermarket, reflect a trend for smaller individual deals, given [...]
Flat growth at motion capture firm OMG despite blockbusters December 5, 2013 MOTION capture firm Oxford Metrics Group (OMG), which provides the technology used in Hollywood blockbusters Gravity and World War Z, yesterday reported a loss of £0.4m during the year to 30 September. “As the global economic outlook shows signs of improvement, we enter the year ahead with cautious optimism,” said chief executive Nick Bolton. The [...]
China banks ban Bitcoin as Wall Street weighs in December 5, 2013 BITCOIN saw volatile trading prices yesterday as investors reacted to news that China’s government banned financial institutions from trading in Bitcoin. Bank of America Merill Lynch (BoAML) also published its first note on Bitcoin – the digital currency that can be traded anonymously and freely worldwide – marking the first major Wall Street bank to [...]
Vodafone’s $130bn Verizon deal given go ahead by US regulator December 5, 2013 VERIZON’S $130bn (£79bn) purchase of Vodafone’s stake in joint US venture Verizon Wireless was granted approval from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) yesterday. “In this instance, the International Bureau was able to expeditiously grant the declaratory ruling by public notice after completing its public interest review,” said International Bureau chief Mindel De La Torre. The [...]
George on fire but Lola stole the show December 5, 2013 SO GEORGE’S Autumn Statement tie was green. A bolt from the blue (pun intended) for avid George Osborne tie followers, who were expecting blue or purple, and a treat for Ladbrokes which didn’t have to pay out a penny on its tie bet, as punters rushed to place their bets on other colours. The Capitalist [...]
Tinkling the ivories: (R)Ed Balls misses his Grade 3 piano exam December 5, 2013 MOVE over Miliband, there’s a new Red Ed in town. The shadow chancellor’s frustrations at George Osborne’s “good news” on the economy, were played out on his face when he addressed the House of Commons after yesterday’s Autumn Statement. His face took on a reddish hue – prompting a storm of comments on Twitter. But [...]
Silicon Valley Bank’s Got Christmas Talent December 5, 2013 GET YOUR secret Santa pressies ready and start crafting those turkey vol-au-vents; ‘tis the season for Christmas parties. While we’re remaining tight lipped about the City A.M. bash, The Capitalist has heard Silicon Valley Bank held its festive fiesta last night at Vinopolis, near London Bridge. But rather than simply sit down to a Christmas [...]
AG Barr’s sales fizz thanks to summer heat December 5, 2013 THE SUMMER heatwave increased Britons’ thirst for AG Barr’s fizzy drinks, the company said yesterday, as it posted another quarter of strong sales growth. The Irn-Bru maker said revenues surged eight per cent in the 18 weeks to 1 December compared with the same time last year, while volume sales also increased by 6.4 per [...]
Bumi heads to arbitration to recover funds from Roeslani December 5, 2013 FTSE 250-listed Bumi yesterday said it would go into arbitration in Singapore to recover $173m (£105.6m) from Rosan Roeslani, after the former director refused to return the funds. “He denies that he is in breach of those obligations and asserts that any outstanding liability to transfer any cash or assets under the Roeslani Agreement has [...]
