EU guilty of credit rating hypocrisy July 6, 2011 SOME people simply can’t win. The largest credit rating agencies – Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s and Fitch – were rightly pilloried for providing ridiculously optimistic advice in the run-up to the financial crisis, deeming bundles of sub-prime mortgages to be as safe as the debt of very cautious and successful companies or governments. It was [...]
Lagarde takes swipe at DSK July 6, 2011 CHRISTINE Lagarde began her tenure as IMF chief with a swipe at her predecessor, saying her leadership will be “more inclusive”. She used her first speech as new IMF chief to say she will push ahead with reforms to give fast-growing emerging markets more influence at the global lender. The former French finance minister said: [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING July 6, 2011 FINANCIAL TIMES SPOTIFY SIGNS DEAL WITH VIRGIN Spotify and Virgin Media on Wednesday announced a deal that could help the music streaming service boost numbers of paying customers and reach a wider audience. By the end of the year, Virgin Media’s 4m UK customers will be able to access Spotify’s catalogue of 13m songs through [...]
Linklaters to open in Abu Dhabi July 6, 2011 Magic circle law firm Linklaters will this morning announce plans to open a stand-alone office in Abu Dhabi, responding to client demand in the region. The office will be led by Middle East managing partner and project finance specialist Sarosh Mewawalla, supported by New York finance partner Paul Kruger and Dubai corporate partner Nick Garland.
Goldman and RBS aided in crisis July 6, 2011 Goldman Sachs, Lehman Brothers, RBS and UBS were the biggest beneficiaries of very short-term Federal Reserve loans extended at the height of the financial crisis, according to data out yesterday. The Fed’s figures showed Goldman took $15bn in exchange for securities ranging from Treasuries to mortgage bonds. UBS, RBS and Lehman took $10bn each.
Buffett joins bid for Citi unit July 6, 2011 Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway has joined the group bidding for Citigroup’s consumer lending unit OneMain. Buffett is thought to have teamed up with Centrebridge Capital Partners and Leucadia National Corp.
3i hires top rainmaker to boost deals July 6, 2011 PRIVATE equity giant 3i headed off investor concerns over its growth and capital use yesterday as it bolstered its team with top City rainmaker Simon Borrows, who joins it as chief investment officer. 3i said it invested £233m in the first quarter of 2011, more than double the amount in the same period in 2010, [...]
City dealmaker is a prime asset July 6, 2011 SIMON Borrows’ move to fund manager 3i is great news for its shareholders, who gain one of the City’s best-known rainmakers. Borrows, chairman of Greenhill & Co since 2010 and founder of its European business in 2008, advises the UK’s biggest companies, including G4S, Tesco, Informa, Inchcape and National Express. He has also advised 3i [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: HAS 3i’S PERFORMANCE IMPROVED? July 6, 2011 MICK GILLIGAN | KILLIK & CO Investments and realisations increased significantly in the period compared to the same period last year and Queen reiterated his encouraging stance. 3i shares have performed well since April and this reaffirms the positive progress being made. We remain positive on the shares at the current 18 per cent discount [...]
Facebook in tie-up with Skype July 6, 2011 MARK Zuckerberg yesterday announced a tie-up with video calling giant Skype as it bolsters its site against the threat of Google’s rival social network. The move, which will allow Facebook users to make video calls, is part of a larger redesign that will also add a group chat function and update the appearance of the [...]
