Punch faces tussle with its investors July 1, 2009 HEAVILY indebted pub chain owner Punch Taverns is facing opposition from major shareholders to its plans to raise £375m in a share sale. Greenlight Capital, the US hedge fund, and QVT Financial are believed to be among those who will vote against the fund raising at the group’s AGM in protest at the potential dilution [...]
RBS chief Hester alters pay deal in bid to placate critics July 1, 2009 ROYAL BANK of Scotland chief executive Stephen Hester yesterday pledged to defer cashing incentive shares worth up to £3.4m for an extra two years in an attempt to defuse outrage over his controversial pay package. Hester’s overall package is potentially worth £9.7m, RBS said last week, drawing fire from politicians and trade unions who said [...]
Titan Clifford Chance loses its lead spot July 1, 2009 CLIFFORD Chance was yesterday knocked off the top spot as the world’s biggest law firm after revealing a 37 per cent plunge in full year profits. Average partner earnings at the London-based firm slumped from £1.16m in 2007-08 to £733,000 over the 12 months to 30 April as its key banking and corporate clients struggled [...]
Credit card cheques banned July 1, 2009 Banks will be prevented from raising customers’ credit card limits and banned from sending out unsolicited credit card cheques as part of government plans for consumer protection. One in five people have had their credit card limit increased without their consent, said a survey by website Uswitch.
Vodafone and Carphone reunite July 1, 2009 Vodafone and Carphone Warehouse are set to work together again as the mobile phone network looks to improve its position in the fiercely competitive UK market. The renewal of their previous working relationship means Vodafone is abandoning its three-year exclusive deal with rival Phones4U.
Pearl faces bondholder battle July 1, 2009 Bondholders in British insurer Pearl Group said last night they would not back a proposed re-listing of the group because of concerns over treatment of the bonds. Pearl, Hugh Osmond’s closed life funds investment vehicle, has said it would float on the London Stock Exchange providing the group with £510m of new capital.
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING July 1, 2009 FINANCIAL TIMES SCRAPPAGE INCENTIVES REVIVE CAR DEMAND Car sales rose in several big European and Asian markets last month, lifted largely by government scrapping incentives aimed at reviving consumer demand. The numbers give weight to the notion that stimulus measures are pulling the global motor industry out of its deep downturn, but carmakers and industry [...]
Royal Mail sell-off shelved July 1, 2009 THE government yesterday shelved controversial plans for a part-privatisation of the Royal Mail due to the depressed state of the economy. Business Secretary Lord Mandelson told the House of Lords that “market conditions” had made it “impossible” to complete a deal on “favourable terms.” He added there was “no prospect” of the proposed sale of up [...]
Britain’s transport policy in deep crisis July 1, 2009 BRITAIN’S transport policy is in chaos. This is hardly news, you might say, but the issue is once again at the fore. It is clear that there is a big problem with the way the rail franchises have been allocated. Firms have an incentive to bid too much for a franchise because they know that [...]
SABMiller in S Africa deal July 1, 2009 SABMILLER, the world’s second largest brewer, yesterday signed a deal to sell black investors 10 per cent of its South African business to comply with post-apartheid rules. The deal will hand black employees and other stakeholders a $775m (£454m) chunk of the company’s Johnannesburg-based subsidiary, at an estimated cost of $220m in the biggest empowerment deal [...]
