Ofcom rules will allow BT to offer free football TV March 15, 2010 BT is allowed to offer free Premier League football as Ofcom has already withdrawn restrictions preventing the firm offering “bundle” deals. The former state operator was governed by strict laws aimed at improving competition. But recent changes mean BT would be allowed to tie up Premier League matches with its broadband and fixed-line services. The [...]
More cash for football clubs March 15, 2010 THE Premier League is planning a radical shake-up of its funding for the lower leagues in a bid to help stop clubs hitting the financial rocks. Portsmouth’s woes have dominated the headlines but it is the plight of Championship sides without bumper Premier League revenues that is troubling analysts. Now sources close to the matter [...]
Daimler and Renault weigh up closer ties over small cars March 15, 2010 Germany’s Daimler and French rival Renault are in talks about a possible equity swap, according to a research note put out yesterday. The two firms are talking about a wide-ranging development deal that would also include Renault’s Japanese partner Nissan, said Sanford Bernstein analyst Max Warburton. A Daimler tie-up with Renault-Nissan would help Daimler develop [...]
Consol agrees deal to purchase Dominion’s gas fields for $3.5bn March 15, 2010 Consol Energy agreed to buy US rival Dominion Resources’ Appalachian natural gas properties for $3.48bn (£2.31bn) in cash, giving Consol a leading position in the growing Marcellus Shale field. Consol said it plans to issue $4bn in debt and equity to fund the purchase. The deal is the latest sign that energy companies are targeting [...]
Insider deal couple to face criminal trial March 15, 2010 A married couple have been charged with insider dealing as part of the Financial Services Authority’s (FSA’s) clampdown on market abuse just days after the conviction of former Cazenove banker Malcolm Calvert. Former Dresdner Kleinwort investment banker Christian Littlewood and his wife Angie Lew have been charged with 13 counts of insider dealing in a [...]
Margaret Cole FSA Head of enforcement March 15, 2010 WITH polished marble floors and bright red-and-white logos, high street upstart Metro Bank will try to bring a glitzy experience to deposit taking when it opens in the summer. The first two branches in Holborn and South Kensington will open in early June, with two more in Kensington High Street and Fulham Broadway to follow [...]
UBS gives its bosses £34m bonus packet March 15, 2010 SWISS bank UBS handed its senior executives SFr55m (£34m) in bonuses and awards in 2009, a large increase on 2008’s figure despite a third consecutive year of losses. Including base salaries, total compensation for the Zurich-based institution’s 13 board members reached SFr68.7m – more than seven times the sum paid out a year earlier. UBS [...]
Investec launches music team March 15, 2010 Investec private bank has launched a specialist music and entertainment team to handle the affairs of wealthy people in those industries, such as artists, managers and agents. The move comes after Investec found many music and entertainment workers were struggling to manage their affairs to the extent that some could not even secure a mortgage [...]
Hedge fund recovery in full swing March 15, 2010 The fund of hedge funds industry shrank by 10 per cent in 2009 but the trend has begun to go into reverse, according to the latest InvestHedge Billion Dollar Club survey. The research found firms with more than $1bn (£665m) in assets under management in funds of funds now control a combined amount of $625bn [...]
Activist Myerson loses board struggle at D1 Oils March 15, 2010 BRIAN Myerson, the activist shareholder who has made a name for himself by giving boards a hard time, yesterday got a touch of his own medicine when a lack of shareholder support caused him to quit his job as chairman of D1 Oils. Myerson, who had been chairman since 2008, tried to gain the support [...]