Ashley hits back at Jones’ loan claims July 19, 2009 The bitter row between Sports Direct’s Mike Ashley and JJB Sport’s executive chairman Sir David Jones intensified yesterday after Ashley released a contract showing that the £1.5m personal loan was paid after Jones joined JJB’s board, contradicting a former statement by the group. The loan agreement, a copy of which has been seen by City [...]
Banks back to winning ways July 19, 2009 MORGAN Stanley and Credit Suisse will continue the resurgence of fortunes among the world’s biggest banks this week, when they report second quarter results expected to show a gradual recovery. Wall Street giant Morgan Stanley, which reports on Wednesday, is forecast to show a slight improvement from the first quarter, cutting losses from $0.57 (£0.35) [...]
HRE could need more cash July 19, 2009 Hypo Real Estate (HRE) is likely to need more new equity than originally expected, its chairman has said. “It would not surprise me if a €10bn (£8.6bn) capital did not suffice for HRE,” Michael Endres said. Germany’s highest-profile casualty of the financial crisis has been propped up with more than €100bn in capital and guarantees, [...]
Johnson hints at April election July 19, 2009 Health secretary Alan Johnson has inadvertently hinted that Labour is expecting to fight an election campaign in April 2010. Responding to polls putting the Conservatives well ahead of Labour, Johnson said his party was still in the running “eight months before a general election”. Such a timetable would suggest that Labour is planning a 6 [...]
Zuma installs new central banker July 19, 2009 South Africa’s president Jacob Zuma has appointed Gill Marcus as the new governor of the country’s central bank. Marcus, a former deputy governor, will take over from Tito Mboweni after he asked to be allowed to step down from his five-year term early. Marcus, who served as deputy governor of the South African Reserve Bank [...]
More clarity needed on Tarp July 19, 2009 Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner should put more pressure on US banks to reveal how they intend to use over $200bn (£122.5bn) which the government has ploughed into them, according to a new report by Neil Barofsky, special inspector general of the Troubled Asset Relief Program (Tarp). The report, to be published today, will say that [...]
CIT cuts $3bn salvation deal July 19, 2009 US lending giant CIT Group last night cut an eleventh-hour deal with its key bondholders for $3bn(£1.8bn) in financing that will save the 101-year-old from the jaws of bankruptcy. CIT, which suffered a liquidity crunch and is straining under its multi-billion dollar debt load, now aims to restructure outside of court. The firm, which lends [...]
Barclays star Jenkins to quit the bank to set up his own business July 19, 2009 TOP Barclays dealmaker Roger Jenkins is understood to be leaving the bank to set up an advisory business targeting sovereign wealth funds. Jenkins, thought to earn around £40m a year, was instrumental in securing the £5.8bn investment from Middle Eastern state-backed investors that helped the bank steer clear of government control. The news comes as [...]
Iceland to restructure banks July 19, 2009 The Icelandic government will today announce a €1.5bn (£1.3bn) recapitalisation of its collapsed banking sector, and announce a deal which will see control of two of the country’s new banks pass to foreign creditors. The government plans to issue bonds worth 270bn Icelandic kronur (£1.3bn) to the three new banks set up in the wake [...]
Nomura beefs up equities team July 19, 2009 Nomura Holdings’ US brokerage unit has hired Ciaran O’Kelly from Bank of America as a managing director and head of equities in the Americas. The hiring by Nomura Securities International is part of an aggressive push by its Japan-based parent to expand in North America, following its purchase last year of Lehman Brothers’ Asian, European [...]
