Amlin says business is still mixed November 15, 2010 LLOYD’S insurance group Amlin said yesterday trading last quarter was mixed, as it posted a 39 per cent increase in premiums written in the year to date. The group wrote £1.92bn in the period, thanks to its acquisition of ACI and new business within its UK fleet motor and Bermuda arms. Amlin said catastrophe reinsurance [...]
Sportingbet owns up to merger talks November 15, 2010 ONLINE bookmaker Sportingbet has confirmed talks with “different parties” following reports the group is considering merging with Swedish rival Unibet. The companies are understood to have held preliminary discussions about combining to create a £600m group, with further talks expected in coming weeks. Sportingbet said in response to the weekend speculation that it “has had [...]
FSA starts insider dealing trial November 15, 2010 THE FINANCIAL Services Authority (FSA) launched its latest insider dealing and money laundering case yesterday, after increased scrutiny of these crimes by the regulator. The FSA, represented by lead prosecutor Tony Shaw, detailed its case against Neil Rollins by chronicling his share trading in PM Group, a Yorkshire-based company where Rollins was a senior manager. [...]
Blackstone slams Icahn for opposing Dynegy deal November 15, 2010 BLACKSTONE Group and Dynegy yesterday defended the private equity firm’s $543m (£338.3m) bid for the struggling power company two days before a crucial vote, criticising activist shareholders, including billionaire investor Carl Icahn, who have opposed the deal. Blackstone’s offer of $4.50 cash per share is opposed by Dynegy’s two largest shareholders – Icahn and hedge [...]
Premier Oil denies talk of takeover November 15, 2010 BRITISH oil company Premier was yesterday forced to deny it had been approached by the Korea National Oil Company (KNOC) about a takeover offer after shares shot up. The North Sea-focused explorer played down takeover rumours yesterday, with a spokesperson saying: “If any approach had been made, we would have had to make an announcement [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS November 15, 2010 Barclays Barclays has appointed Paul McNamara (pictured) as MD of insurance and investments to strengthen the bank’s ability to make protection insurance more accessible. McNamara comes from Standard Life, where he was MD for group strategy and corporate finance, before which he was a director of marketing and distribution at HBOS financial services. In another [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS November 15, 2010 MARKS & SPENCER Deutsche Bank rates the high street giant a “hold” with a target price of 430p. The broker believes the benefits of new boss Marc Bolland’s overhaul of the stores will not be seen until 2012/13. However, DB says the retailer’s recent results pointed to strong sales momentum in the short term, with [...]
Irish: We don’t need a bailout November 14, 2010 THE Irish government yesterday continued to deny that the country is insolvent, but admitted that “ongoing contacts” continue with international officials “in light of current market conditions”. The admission from the Ministry of Finance yesterday marks a striking shift of tone from earlier statements which dismissed reports that Ireland was discussing a bailout package. Justice [...]
BHP Billiton pursuit of Potash over November 14, 2010 GLOBAL mining giant BHP Billiton last night killed off its protracted $39bn (£24bn) pursuit of Potash, the world’s biggest deal this year, and said it would return $4.2bn (£2.6bn) to investors through a share buyback. The move comes after Canada blocked BHP’s bid for the world’s largest fertiliser maker on 3 November and gave BHP [...]
Labour splits over 50p tax November 14, 2010 ALAN Johnson, the shadow chancellor, yesterday said the 50p rate should be a temporary feature of the tax system – putting him at odds with his party leader. During his leadership campaign, recently installed Labour leader Ed Miliband said the 50p top rate would be made permanent if he became Prime Minister. Miliband also threw his [...]
