SPORT IN BRIEF October 12, 2009 Sabres crash to defeatCRICKET: Somerset’s chances of qualifying for the next stage of the Champions League suffered a blow after they crashed to a 44-run defeat to Trinidad & Tobago in Bangalore. Denesh Ramdin top-scored with 39 as Trinidad smashed 150-9 from their 20 overs and took a firm hold on the game when they [...]
FORSALE: 16BN OF UK STATE HOLDINGS October 11, 2009 PRIME Minister Gordon Brown will today signal a programme of asset sales intended to reduce the government’s debt mountain as part of his campaign to demonstrate he is dealing with the problems facing the UK economy. Speaking today in the City, Brown will announce plans to sell upwards of £16bn of non-financial assets, including the [...]
Split-caps survivor in come-back October 11, 2009 RODERICK “Rolly” Crawford, who has not held a senior job in the City since being implicated in the high-profile split-caps scandal two years ago, has emerged as the front-runner for the chief executive role at investment bank Fairfax. Sources told City A.M. yesterday that Crawford is the favourite to take over from current Fairfax boss [...]
Hedgies plot new directive October 11, 2009 REPRESENTATIVES of the hedge fund industry will this week put forward an alternative to the European Commission’s (EC) alternative investment fund managers (AIFM) directive, which they say would devastate Europe’s hedge fund industry. The Alternative Investment Managers’ Association (Aima) has been leading lobbying efforts to revise the directive and believes that it has secured sufficient [...]
Era of cheap mortgages is gone forever October 11, 2009 WITH official interest rates stuck at rock-bottom levels, consumers could be forgiven for wondering why mortgage rates remain so high. The answer, I’m afraid, is that the era of excessively cheap mortgages is gone forever in the UK. Over time, this will be no bad thing but in the short term it will prove cripplingly [...]
Barclays mulls 4bn sale October 11, 2009 Barclays is considering the sale of a portfolio of credit assets worth £4bn as it continues to clean up its balance sheet in an attempt to further reassure investors. A sale would follow last month’s deal in which the bank effectively ring-fenced $12.3bn (£7.8bn) in risky credit market assets by packaging them into a fund, [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPER SAY THIS MORNING October 11, 2009 THE SUNDAYSThe Sunday TelegraphBORIS JOHNSON WARNS EU TO KEEP OUT OF THE CITYBritain’s financial sector, which creates billions of pounds in revenue for the Treasury, is under threat from European legislation and an increasing tax burden on high-earning individuals, a report from the Mayor of London’s office says. The report, released this week, says that [...]
NatEx bidders need more time October 11, 2009 National Express is this week expected to give the Cosmen-CVC consortium a further two weeks to complete the due diligence required for it to secure loans for its £765m bid for the transport group. The consortium is said to have requested the deadline extension after NatEx complained about its tactics in gathering data, including offering [...]
Citi fined for offshore activity October 11, 2009 Citigroup is to receive a $600,000 (£378,500) fine over derivatives transactions which helped foreign clients avoid paying taxes on dividends. The move by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority is part of US authorities’ tougher stance on offshore tax activity. The fine is to be levied against Citigroup Global Markets, and is partly related to the [...]
Bonus row to flare up again October 11, 2009 THE row over bonuses for investment bankers is due to be reignited this week, as Goldman Sachs prepares to announce a huge layout on pay, expected to be almost double the figure allocated last year. The Wall Street investment bank unveils third quarter profits on Thursday, with analysts predicting pre-tax profits of $3.5bn (£2.2bn) for [...]
