Tidjane Thiam quits Prudential for Credit Suisse: The exit of a chief exec who defied the odds March 10, 2015 Back in 2010, you would never have expected Tidjane Thiam to receive this reaction on his departure from Prudential. An ill-fated acquisition bid left shareholders fuming – the attempt to buy AIA for £21bn saw the insurer lose £373m and Thiam took the blame. On top of that, the Financial Services Authority (FSA) censured him, fining [...]
UK numbers up despite challenges March 10, 2015 INSURANCE group Prudential posted pre-tax profit of £2.6bn for 2014, up 71 per cent on last year’s £1.5bn, despite significant changes in the UK market. New business sales were up by 12 per cent, from £4.2bn to £4.7bn, while in the UK sales grew by 18 per cent, from £725m to £857m. The company increased its [...]
Credit Suisse faces shake up under new boss Tidjane Thiam March 10, 2015 Credit Suisse is braced for major changes to its investment banking units, as shareholders welcomed the appointment of Prudential boss Tidjane Thiam as chief executive. The incoming boss gave few clues as to his plans at a press conference yesterday, but is expected to cut back investment banking and focus on the traditional core of [...]
From Standard Chartered to Prudential: Changing the guard at banks – Bottom Line March 10, 2015 When floods of bosses quit, you should normally be worried. Think of the financial crisis, or the heads that rolled in the wake of the Libor scandal. But this time it is different, and that is surely a good sign. The Pru’s boss has unexpectedly quit, to replace Brady Dougan as the head of Credit [...]
Charles Stanley closes in on deal to offload its securities division March 10, 2015 CITY broker and wealth manager Charles Stanley yesterday confirmed it was in exclusive talks with a suitor to sell its securities business. Responding to a report by Sky News that Oriel Securities owner Stifel Financial was the potential buyer, the group confirmed it was in talks, but did not name the potential acquirer. Sky News [...]
Legal & General gets the keys to Salford March 10, 2015 MEDIACITYUK – the new home of Coronation Street and the northern hub of the BBC – has a new landlord in the form of Legal & General Capital. LGC is now a 50 per cent shareholder in the Salford Quays-based media centre, alongside long-standing owner The Peel Group as part of a joint venture, which [...]
Randy Work joins Roman Abramovich and Sir Chris Hohn with multi-million pound divorce settlement March 10, 2015 London cemented its reputation as the divorce capital of the world after a businessman was ordered to pay his ex-wife £72.3m, amounting to half his wealth. Randy Work, a former private equity executive at Lone Star, argued that his £150m fortune should be protected from ex-wife Mandy Gray as he was the “breadwinner” and because [...]
Cash-strapped Greece receives funding boost March 10, 2015 THE GREEK finance ministry bought itself some time yesterday by taking €555m (£394bn) from a bank rescue fund. The fund – the Hellenic Financial Stability Fund (HFSF) – was used in to recapitalise the country’s main lenders in 2012. Greece’s four largest banks handed over this money following their recapitalisation. But the amount is a [...]
Ineos bulks up shale portfolio with IGas deal March 10, 2015 SHALE gas player IGas was boosted yesterday after announcing it is to sell stakes in seven of its licences in the north west of England to chemicals giant Ineos. Shares in the company closed up 15.62 per cent yesterday, after the deal was announced. Ineos is acquiring at least a 50 per cent interest in [...]
G4S returns to profit as revenue from emerging markets surges March 10, 2015 CONTROVERSIAL security firm G4S has returned to profit after seeing its emerging market revenues surge, it emerged yesterday. The firm’s domestic market suffered in recent years due to fallout from the Olympic Games and government fines relating to electronic tagging. Last April, G4S had to refund the government £109m after an audit found it charged [...]
