Actelion recruits Garnier in battle for board control April 6, 2011 THE fight for control of Swiss biotech company Actelion continued yesterday with a counterattack by the company against its activist investors. Actelion said it would add two pharmaceutical heavyweights, Jean-Pierre Garnier and Robert Bertolini, to its board with Garnier becoming chairman in 2012. Elliott, which holds six per cent of Actelion, has accused the board [...]
Rulemakers look at covered bonds April 6, 2011 BRITAIN’S financial rulemakers have launched a review of the UK’s covered bond market regulation, to nurture the use of the securities by banks. The Treasury and the Financial Services Authority are consulting the City on the market for the instruments, which are considered more resistant to financial jitters. Tim Skeet, board member of the International [...]
Leveraged loans hit pre-crash high April 6, 2011 GLOBAL leveraged loan volume hit its highest level last month since before the recession, according to data provider Dealogic. The combined value of leveraged loans was $132.4bn (£81.1bn) during March, an increase of 42 per cent from the previous month. The highest monthly level was last seen in October 2007, when $168.2bn worth of leveraged [...]
Dish buys Blockbuster assets April 6, 2011 Blockbuster’s assets were bought by Dish Network at a bankruptcy auction for a winning bid of $320m (£195.9m) in the early hours of yesterday morning. The second-largest US satellite TV provider will pay about $228m in cash with the aim of bolstering offerings, most likely using Blockbuster’s online outlet to deliver movies to customers. The [...]
Headstrong sold to Genpact April 6, 2011 Backoffice services provider Genpact is buying smaller rival Headstrong for $550m (£336.8m) in cash as it seeks to strengthen its financial services offerings. The purchase of privately held Headstrong, which gets most of its sales from the capital markets, will help Genpact’s banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI) business as the economy recovers from the [...]
Daimler and Rolls launch Tognum bid April 6, 2011 ROLLS ROYCE and Daimler formally laid out their takeover bid for motor and turbine maker Tognum yesterday, telling shareholders their €3.2bn (£2.8bn) deal offers the chance for strong future growth. The companies, which announced their interest in March, said investors would retain their rights to a 50 cents dividend for 2010 on top of the [...]
Car sales fall in March for ninth month in a row April 6, 2011 CAR sales in the UK are still below pre-recession levels and have been declining for nine consecutive months, according to a report by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). A total of 366,101 new 11-plate cars were registered in March, a 7.9 per cent slump in like-for-like sales on the same period last [...]
Europe set to grant Airbus defence bailout April 6, 2011 SEVEN European nations are set to formalise their backing for the problematic Airbus A400M airlifter with a €3.5bn (£3.07bn) rescue deal today. The bailout comes after months of political wrangling to prevent the collapse of Europe’s largest single defence project, originally agreed in March 2010, following costly overruns and delays with redundancies of 10,000 jobs. [...]
EasyJet enjoys a boost to its traffic in March April 6, 2011 BUDGET airline easyJet yesterday reported a better-than-expected 12 per cent jump in monthly passenger figures compared to last year. The Luton-based budget carrier flew 4.4m people in March, up from 3.9m a year earlier. The airline carried 51.2m passengers in the 12 months ending March 2011, up 8.5 per cent from 47.2m a year earlier, [...]
CITY VIEWS: WOULD YOU BUY A HYBRID AS YOUR NEXT CAR? April 6, 2011 Save or Borrow peer to peer at RateSetter.com SIMON FOSS | RSA INSURANCE “I wouldn’t buy a hybrid as I live in central London so it’s easier for me to use local transport. The benefits are interesting, but I couldn’t take advantage of them anyway.” ALAN GAUDENCIO | WELLS FARGO “No, as it doesn’t suit [...]
