Clinton undergoes heart surgery February 11, 2010 Former US President Bill Clinton has undergone heart surgery at the Columbia Presbyterian hospital in New York. Clinton had two stents – tiny mesh scaffolds used to prop open an artery – inserted in one of his heart arteries. The 63-year-old had quadruple-bypass surgery in New York in September 2004 after experiencing prolonged chest pains [...]
Tories to move fast on reform February 11, 2010 The Conservative government yesterday reiterated its promise to tear up the current structures of financial regulation, and transfer banking supervision to the Bank of England within a year of winning a general election. In the same week that the Financial Services Authority chief executive Hector Sants resigned, the shadow financial secretary Mark Hoban vowed to [...]
IPO market shaken as second firm quits February 11, 2010 The IPO market suffered another blow yesterday when Merlin Entertainments postponed its £2bn flotation. The industry was still reeling from the withdrawal of Travelport’s £2bn listing on Tuesday after it failed to secure enough subscriptions. The developments rocked the hopes of a string of firms planning to list in the coming months. Analysts say furniture [...]
FASHION ICON MCQUEEN DIES February 11, 2010 British Fashion designer Alexander McQueen was found hanged at his flat in Mayfair yesterday. McQueen, 40, who was named British designer of the year four times, is thought to have become depressed over the death of his mother, Joyce, last week. He had been due to attend her funeral today. The Metropolitan Police say they [...]
BT has £9bn pension hole February 11, 2010 BT yesterday revealed a yawning pension deficit of £9bn. Shares in the company – which now has the biggest pension deficit in the private sector – nose-dived as the extent of the black hole was revealed. The firm announced an agreement with trustees to pay back the vast sum over 17 years, adding £525m into [...]
Motorola plans to split into two public companies in 2011 February 11, 2010 Motorola aims to split into two companies in the first quarter of 2011, separating its cellphone and television set-top box businesses from the rest of the company, it said yesterday. Motorola said each company would be independent and publicly traded, and that the separation would provide the businesses flexibility to grow in the long term. [...]
HEDGE FUND FASHION GURU HAS A SALES BOOM February 11, 2010 WE ALWAYS knew women were good at multi-tasking, but Britt Lintner really does take the concept to a new extreme. Regular readers may remember Lintner, who heads up her own flourishing womenswear label while managing to hold down a tough job in hedge fund sales at GLG Partners. And now I hear that not only [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF BT’S MASSIVE PENSION DEFICIT? February 11, 2010 ROS ALTMANN | INDEPENDENT PENSIONS EXPERT BT has a huge pension scheme with a massive deficit. The company is doing quite well, so it’s important it pays as much as it can into the scheme now. If it doesn’t, we could see a situation similar to British Airways, which is in serious trouble with its [...]
Credit Suisse in rude health after crunch February 11, 2010 CREDIT Suisse cemented its reputation as one of the victors of the global recession yesterday as it swung back into the black with net profits of Sfr6.7bn (£4bn) for 2009. Allaying fears after the Italian crackdown on tax havens left rival UBS gushing assets, Credit Suisse reported Sfr35.3bn net new money for its private banking [...]
Sir Win Bischoff adds reinforcements to the board at Lloyds Banking Group… February 11, 2010 LLOYDS Banking Group yesterday appointed two new non-executive directors, the first board appointments since Sir Win Bischoff became chairman of the reviving institution. Glen Moreno, the current chairman of Pearson, becomes the group’s senior independent director. Moreno has significant experience in the banking industry, having held a number of positions at Citigroup between 1969 and [...]
