Bond ETFs see influx as equity funds sold off December 7, 2011 INVESTORS abandoned equity-based exchange traded products (ETPs) last month and ploughed capital into fixed-income products, BlackRock said yesterday, to secure steadier returns and avoid the stock market volatility seen over recent months. Investors pulled $8.5bn (£5.4bn) out of equity exchange traded funds (ETFs), but added $3.7bn into bond products and $4bn into commodity funds over [...]
ICAP DOES DISCO FOR DRESS-UP DEALATHON December 7, 2011 THEY have only worked at ICAP for four days. But the twenty ex-MF Global staff who joined the firm last Thursday have already made a big impression by installing Faces nightclub on the trading floor and dressing up as the late Jimmy Savile. “Well, we had to make a splash somehow,” said ICAP’s new global [...]
Blacks tanks as it seeks an Xmas buyer December 7, 2011 STRUGGLING outdoor equipment retailer Blacks Leisure yesterday put itself up for sale, sending its shares plummeting as it admitted it had failed to find an alternative route out of it funding troubles. Shares in Blacks, which have lost 90 per cent of their value since the start of the year, extended losses to close at [...]
Goldman backs our charity December 7, 2011 A CHARITY that pulls people out of poverty by offering vital banking services? That’s the kind of charity that straight-talking Goldman Sachs partner Martin Devenish supports. Devenish, the head of Goldman’s emerging markets equities sales, sees his work unlock the potential of high-growth economies every day and is an outspoken advocate of helping entrepreneurs make [...]
CHIEF EXECUTIVE OPPORTUNITY INTERNATIONAL UK December 7, 2011 I’ve always maintained that what we do here at Opportunity International combines the skills of the social worker with the tools of the banker. For some that might seem something of an unholy alliance, but when it comes to lending – the core of our service – it’s a duality that works. Much of our [...]
MORE THAN £220,000 NOW RAISED December 7, 2011 DONATIONS keep pouring in to our City A.M. Christmas charity appeal and we are very proud to announce that we have now reached a grand total of £222,000. We are grateful to a number of generous personal donors this week, who have asked to remain anonymous but have committed several thousand pounds between them. With [...]
Kesa plunged into a loss by falling Comet December 7, 2011 ELECTRICALS retailer Kesa swung to a loss in the first half, dragged down by the dire performance of its Comet stores, it said yesterday. Kesa’s results yesterday will be the last to include Comet, which is being sold to private equity buyers OpCapita for a nominal £2. Kesa will also pay a cash dowry of [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: WHAT WILL LIFE AFTER COMET BE LIKE FOR KESA? December 7, 2011 RICHARD HUNTER | HARGREAVES LANSDOWN The planned disposal of the UK Comet business will convert the company into a European, especially French, play and even here the previously promising development has weakened. The Comet disposal has also resulted in some notable impairment charges. There are some glimmers of hope. DAVID JEARY | INVESTEC The Comet [...]
Carrefour in buy-out talks December 7, 2011 FRENCH retailer Guyenne et Gascogne said yesterday it was in talks with Carrefour that include expanding equity ties, and that it may receive a proposal soon. Guyenne et Gascogne chairman Bertrand de Montesquiou confirmed the talks after Le Figaro newspaper said Carrefour was considering buying its largest franchisee, and paying for it with Carrefour shares. [...]
Gerald Corbett to join Betfair December 7, 2011 CITY veteran Gerald Corbett, who has been chief executive of both Railtrack and Woolworths during his lengthy career, has been appointed as deputy chairman of struggling betting group Betfair. Corbett is currently currently chairman of Britvic, the the Royal National Institute for the Deaf and Moneysupermarket.com. He was chairman of Woolworths until a year before the [...]
