S&S makes initial offer for EDF March 17, 2010 Scottish & Southern Energy has made an indicative offer for the UK distribution network of French power company EDF, its finance director confirmed yesterday. “We have put in an indicative bid, it’s at a very early stage of the process,” finance director Gregor Alexander said on the sidelines of an energy conference in London. Alexander [...]
ABP sues Bank of America March 17, 2010 Dutch pension fund ABP, the world’s third largest, has sued Bank of America saying it withheld vital information in 2008 about its Merrill Lynch takeover that would have led ABP to reject the deal. “Prior to the merger date, BofA appear to have had knowledge of record quarterly losses Merrill was facing. The losses were [...]
Bellzone Mining set for AIM IPO March 17, 2010 Bellzone Mining said yesterday it expects to join London’s AIM on 31 March raising cash to develop its iron projects. The iron ore miner is raising $100m (£65m) and said it expected its market capitalisation to be between £265m and £400m, depending on the pricing of its shares. It would be the largest IPO on AIM [...]
Nomura elects first foreigner to board March 17, 2010 Nomura has appointed its first foreigner to the board, as part of a change in management structure aimed at supporting its global expansion. Former Lehman Brothers executive Jasjit “Jesse” Bhattal will be the first foreigner to take up a place on the bank’s 10-strong executive management board. As of 1 April, Bhattal, who was born [...]
FSA to boost its firepower in hiring spree March 17, 2010 THE Financial Services Authority (FSA) said yesterday it would boost its 3,300 workforce by 460 as part of its bid to take a tougher approach to policing the industry. The City watchdog said the hiring spree would mean yearly staff costs would increase by £47.7m to £350m this year, with its overall budget increasing by [...]
Generali profit jumps 52 per cent March 17, 2010 Assicurazioni Generali, Europe’s third largest insurer, reported a rise in profit in 2009, but weak non-life operations meant it missed analysts expectations. The net profit of €1.309bn, up 52 per cent from 2008, compared with a market estimate of €1.417bn. The cash dividend of €0.35 per share also missed expectations of €0.41 a share. In [...]
UK asks EU to probe Sara Lee deal March 17, 2010 Competition watchdog the Office of Fair Trading has asked the European authorities to investigate the UK aspects of Procter & Gamble’s takeover of Sara Lee’s air freshener unit over concerns the deal may be anti-competitive.
OFT paves way for Indie sale March 17, 2010 THE Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has paved the way for ex-KGB man Alexander Lebedev to buy the Independent, after ruling it would not launch an investigation over competition issues. Lebedev recently bought a 75 per cent stake in the London Evening Standard. The OFT had until 26 April to decide whether to investigate but [...]
Rio four spying trial this month March 17, 2010 The trial of four Rio Tinto staff charged with commercial spying in China will begin on 22 March in a Shanghai court, Australia’s foreign affairs department said yesterday. The four employees of the Anglo-Australian miner, including Australian citizen Stern Hu, have been in Chinese custody since July over accusations of illegally obtaining commercial secrets. The [...]
Promethean rewards staff for flotation March 17, 2010 EDUCATIONAL technology company Promethean celebrated its successful stockmarket flotation by handing most of its 870 employees a “golden thankyou” yesterday. Recognising their contribution to the growth of the business, the interactive whiteboard maker gave staff with more than six months’ service bonuses of up to £30,000, with an average payout of £3,500. Those who had [...]
