Lloyds plans a 12.5bn share issue October 7, 2009 LLOYDS Banking Group will turn to traditional investors rather than a sovereign wealth fund to help it raise up to £25bn to exit the government’s Asset Protection Scheme (APS), City A.M. can reveal. Sources familiar with the bank’s plans said last night that it had submitted a proposal to the Financial Services Authority (FSA) that [...]
Davis says no to ITV chair October 7, 2009 EX-REED Elsevier chief executive Sir Crispin Davis has walked away from the opportunity to become ITV’s chairman, dealing another blow to the troubled broadcaster. Davis – who was the board’s favourite to replace Michael Grade – is said to have felt the job was too high profile for his first time as a company chairman. [...]
A windfall tax on banks is a bad idea October 7, 2009 IT is now clear that the Tories have it in for the banks. I wrote in this space yesterday about their interest in reviving a version of Lord Howe’s 1981 windfall tax on high street banks; we now know in much more detail one of the ideas they are working on, courtesy of revelations in [...]
Ladbrokes to raise 300m October 7, 2009 BETTING giant Ladbrokes will today call on investors to participate in a £300m rights issue as it struggles to pay off mounting debts. The bookmaker has moved to cut costs and has already slashed its dividend but is still battling a debt pile which had reached £962m at the half year. The firm, which is [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING October 7, 2009 FINANCIAL TIMESMICROSOFT NEARER TO EU DEALMicrosoft yesterday scored an important breakthrough in its long-running battle with European regulators, paving the way for an end to a highly charged dispute that has hung over the US?software company for much of this decade in one of its most important markets. The EU’s antitrust watchdog said that it [...]
Gold hits fresh all-time high October 7, 2009 Gold prices hit a record for a second consecutive day to close at $1,050 an ounce yesterday as investors bet that trading momentum would push the precious metal higher still. It came a day after having pushed past the previous record of $1,033.9, which was set in March last year. Investors have been sending gold [...]
Microsoft edges toward EU deal October 7, 2009 Microsoft said it has made concessions in a bid to end its long-running battle with the European Union’s Competition Commission over the way the firm bundles its Internet Explorer browser with its Windows software. Microsoft has agreed to give PC users a “ballot screen” allowing them the choice of alternative browsers. The software firm added [...]
Aviva to list in New York October 7, 2009 INSURANCE giant Aviva has announced plans to list on the New York Stock Exchange as it embarks on a drive to raise its profile in the US. The company, the world’s fifth-largest insurer by gross premiums, said it would begin trading on 20 October, just days after it said it would launch a partial initial [...]
Biggest USlisting in 18 months sparks optimism October 7, 2009 SHARES of Verisk Analytics, an insurance risk specialist, rose 23 per cent in their first day of trading on Nasdaq yesterday, after the company completed the largest IPO by a US firm in 18 months. Verisk shares immediately jumped 22.7 per cent when trade began, adding to hope that the equity markets are out of [...]
Royal Mail faces massive strike October 7, 2009 BRITAIN’S postal network is about to grind to a halt, with Royal Mail workers today expected to have voted in favour of the first national strike in two years. With the strike destined to bring chaos to Christmas deliveries, online retail giant Amazon has cancelled a contract with the firm worth some £25m. Amazon, Royal [...]
