Abu Dhabi exchange eyes 20pc LSE stake December 19, 2010 ABU Dhabi is in talks to buy a 20 per cent stake in the London Stock Exchange (LSE) held by indebted neighbour Dubai. The LSE stake sale would be part of an Abu Dhabi buyout of exchange operator Borse Dubai and would follow the latter’s sale of about half of its shares in Nasdaq OMX [...]
ECB fears strength of Ireland bailout December 19, 2010 FEARS over the security of Ireland’s bank bailout package have been raised by the European Central Bank, amid concerns it could impact on its ability to offer funds to support the Eurozone financial system. The Frankfurt institution has “serious concerns” over the legal certainty of legislation rushed through in order to provide Ireland with an [...]
Punch bondholders seek advice December 19, 2010 BONDHOLDERS of pub chain Punch Taverns have met with financial advisers in order to prepare for possible restructuring talks with the heavily-indebted firm. Bondholders met on Friday to discuss with several advisers – including Houlihan Lokey, Rothschild and Ernst & Young – how to handle talks should the company look to renegotiate its debts. Amongst [...]
Algeria mulls offer for BP assets December 19, 2010 ALGERIA is considering snapping up assets oil giant BP wants to sell in the country, before it allows another firm to buy them. Russian oil company TNK-BP wants to buy BP’s assets in Algeria, which include stakes in two major gas-producing fields, but Algerian state energy firm Sonatrach has the right of first refusal. BP’s [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING December 19, 2010 FINANCIAL TIMES APAX PLANS €11BN FUND Apax Partners aims to cement its position as Europe’s biggest private equity group next year by raising a new €11bn-plus ($14.5bn) fund – the biggest buy-out fundraising since the start of the credit crisis. Led by Martin Halusa, who replaced Sir Ronald Cohen as head of Apax six years [...]
TRON OFF TO SLOW START December 19, 2010 Tron Legacy, a costly 3D sci-fi movie that Walt Disney has promoted for more than three years, opened disappointingly at the weekend box office in America. Tron, a massively hyped sequel to a 1982 movie, earned $43.6m (£28.04bn) during its first three days of release, Disney said yesterday. Industry observers had been expecting a three-day [...]
Anglo readies takeover plan for De Beers December 19, 2010 MINING giant Anglo American is understood to be lining up a multi-billion pound plan to take over diamond group De Beers. Anglo, which owns 45 per cent of De Beers, is considering making an offer for the 40 per cent stake held by the Oppenheimer family of South Africa, worth at least £2bn. The government [...]
BHP ditches Merrill after Potash failure December 19, 2010 BHP BILLITON has dumped corporate brokers Bank of America Merrill Lynch and is now considering a list of names for a replacement, to be determined in the New Year. BHP’s decision follows the rejection of its expensive bid for Potash Corp by Canadian authorities last month, although BoAML was not actually actively involved in the bid [...]
Report fuels tax protests against HSBC December 19, 2010 THE campaign group UK Uncut has chosen its latest target, HSBC, as a result of suggestions from a former tax inspector that the banking giant is negotiating with the Inland Revenue to withhold around £2bn in tax. The protest group yesterday said the bank is “next in line” for a fresh wave of protests, after [...]
Bank of America cuts off WikiLeaks December 19, 2010 BANK of America has said it will not process payments intended for WikiLeaks, which has angered US authorities with the mass release of US diplomatic cables. The largest US bank by assets joins a growing group of financial services companies, including MasterCard, PayPal and Visa Europe, which are restricting payments to the global organisation that [...]
