Hargreaves Lansdown cuts dividend expectations as City regulator demands it ups its regulatory capital surplus August 4, 2017 Investment services group Hargreaves Lansdown (HL) has dropped its special dividend, as City watchdog the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) demands it raises its capital surplus. The FCA reassessed HL's regulatory capital requirements "given the group's strong recent growth in scale and complexity". The investment group calculated that it now needs to retain an extra £50m. [...]
Endless buys struggling iconic luggage brand Antler from private equity firm LDC July 26, 2017 Private equity house Endless, which specialises in moving businesses on after a challenging period, has bought struggling luggage retailer Antler from fellow firm LDC. Since LDC invested in the business in 2010, Antler has been through some tricky periods. In its last filed accounts, for the year ending December 2014, the company made an operating [...]
The UK’s 12 most shorted stocks revealed: Carillion tops the list, with several household names filling in the ranks July 25, 2017 It's not a list which many corporates would be happy to top, but Canaccord Genuity Wealth Management has today released a ranking of the 12 most shorted stocks in the UK. Construction company Carillion topped the list, with 27.2 per cent of its equity having been shorted. High street names such as Debenhams, Marks and [...]
UK business software group Civica has just been sold by Canadian pension fund Omers for more than £1bn July 24, 2017 Business software group Civica has just been sold to Partners Group, a global investment manager with more than $66bn (£50.76bn) in assets under management, for £1.06bn. Omers Private Equity, the private equity branch of the Ontario municipal workers' pension fund Omers which also owns Vue cinemas, made a 2.6-times return on its original investment through [...]
Connection Capital raises £8m from private investors for Volkswagen and Lloyds Bank litigation funder Therium July 19, 2017 Connection Capital, a specialist syndicator of investment funds from private investors, has raised £8m for litigation funder Therium. This largest ever fundraise from Connection Capital, and its third commitment to Therium, will bring the total invested by the firm in litigation funding to £16m. Read more: Woodford-backed litigation funder Burford Capital stands to profit from [...]
Connection Capital raises £8m from private investors for Volkswagen and Lloyds Bank litigation funder Therium July 19, 2017 Connection Capital, a specialist syndicator of investment funds from private investors, has raised £8m for litigation funder Therium. This largest ever fundraise from Connection Capital, and its third commitment to Therium, will bring the total invested by the firm in litigation funding to £16m. Read more: Woodford-backed litigation funder Burford Capital stands to profit from [...]
Asset manager Pemberton launches new debt strategy to fill funding gap left by banks July 5, 2017 Pemberton, a UK-based asset manager backed by insurance giant Legal & General, has launched a new private debt strategy to fund mid-market companies. The “strategic credit opportunities” strategy differs from Pemberton's previous offerings as it will provide junior capital, as well as senior. The junior capital, which has a lower repayment priority in event of [...]
Box-ticking approach to governance is failing companies, says new survey from Tomorrow’s Company June 26, 2017 An overly prescriptive approach to corporate governance is doing little to improve companies' prospects, a new report from non-profit think tank Tomorrow's Company has concluded. In a survey of non-executive directors (NEDs), executives and chairmen, the think tank found that the increasing “burden” of governance was leaving business ill-equipped to drive long term value. It [...]
Revealed: The best UK areas to buy holiday lets, as ‘Airbnb effect’ and weak pound pumps up income to double that of residential lets June 20, 2017 After a sweltering few days in London, holidaying in the UK may not seem like such a bad idea. And as the pound has weakened and apps like Airbnbmake it easier to let out a house, the country's holiday let market has boomed. Average income per booking was up 6.4 per cent year-on year in [...]
Alibaba’s Jack Ma invited to join Aston Martin investor in The Body Shop race just days before the final bid deadline June 4, 2017 As L'Oréal readies to accept the final bids for its ailing cosmetics chain The Body Shop, one bidder has made a late attempt to sweeten its offer by calling on Jack Ma, founder of online marketplace Alibaba. Investindustrial, the Italy-based private equity firm which counts household names such as Aston Martin and Ducati under its [...]