By: William Turvill

I write about M&A, deals, IPOs, private equity, asset management, media and a few other areas for City A.M. I also write news features and am always interested in interviewing and profiling high-profile business figures. I previously worked for Press Gazette and Mail Online.

Aberdeen Asset Management and Standard Life set out co-chief executive plans for “team players” Martin Gilbert and Keith Skeoch

March 20, 2017

Aberdeen Asset Management and Standard Life have set out a plan for how their chief executives will both lead a merged company. After the £11bn merger was announced earlier this month, there had been City concerns about how, and whether, the co-chief exec structure could work in practice. They said today that Standard Life’s Keith Skeoch [...]
Chris Hohn’s Children’s Investment Fund has stepped up its bid to end the €8.5bn Safran-Zodiac deal

March 20, 2017

Sir Chris Hohn’s activist hedge fund has stepped up its campaign to halt an €8.5bn (£7.4bn) takeover. And now, it’s getting personal. The Children’s Investment (TCI) Fund has written to the board members of Safran, the aircraft engine maker that has agreed to buy plane-seat maker Zodiac, threatening to sue them personally if the deal goes [...]
One in four UK deals broke down last year, and more M&A collapses are expected in 2017

March 20, 2017

One in four deals involving UK listed firms broke down in failure last year, new analysis today shows. And, with further economic and political uncertainty on the way, more disrupted deals are thought to be on the cards this year. Read more: Jupiter boss plays down M&A rumours: "We’re not looking to be acquired" Accountancy firm [...]
The straw that broke the camel’s back: How an Italian trading business put the London Stock Exchange-Deutsche Boerse merger in jeopardy

March 19, 2017

If the European Commission blocks the London Stock Exchange’s merger with Deutsche Boerse in the coming weeks, as is widely anticipated, the army of bankers, lawyers and other finance workers on the deal will immediately turn their attention to the body’s in-depth explanation. As an example of what to expect, when the commission blocked the O2-Three [...]
The Mitie short: Hedge funds including Marshall Wace and Old Mutual bet on more share price falls at outsourcing group

March 19, 2017

Hedge funds are anticipating further falls in the share price of troubled outsourcing firm Mitie. Marshall Wace, Old Mutual and Henderson Global Investors are among the investors to have disclosed short positions on the company. Read more: Mitie flogs its healthcare business for just £2 Markit data, reported on by the Sunday Times, shows the [...]
Bovis Homes urged to pursue deal with Redrow over Galliford Try by top 10 investor Royal London Asset Management

March 19, 2017

Bovis Homes has been urged to ditch Galliford Try merger talks for fellow rival Redrow by one of its top 10 investors. The suggestion by Royal London Asset Management, which owns a 3.5 per cent stake in Bovis, came as it emerged that Redrow is considering a revised offer. Read more: This is what analysts [...]
Behind the Panmure Gordon takeover deal: Bob Diamond buyside shuns big banks for unknown entity Hopton Advisers

March 19, 2017

Although the £15.5m Panmure Gordon takeover is small, the deal is also a high-profile one for the City of London. It’s not every day the former chief executive of Barclays, Bob Diamond, launches a takeover bid for a City institution like Panmure. Therefore, some will have been surprised by the names of the advisers working [...]
Unilever is exploring a £6bn sale of spreads brands such as Flora and Stork after Kraft Heinz deal collapse

March 19, 2017

Unilever is exploring the sale of some of its most iconic brands after coming under shareholder pressure over a $143bn takeover bid from Kraft Heinz. Paul Polman, the FTSE 100 firm’s chief executive, is drawing up cost-cutting and restructuring plans, which could lead to the sale of its margarine and spreads business. The division, comprising [...]
Miton shares leap 10 per cent as asset manager reports 70 per cent profit jump and management shake-up

March 16, 2017

Fund manager Miton’s share price leapt 10 per cent today as the company announced a 70 per cent jump in profits and a senior management shake-up. The figures Miton’s assets under management (AUM) at 31 December were £2.91bn, up from £2.78bn a year before. Adjusted pre-tax profits for the year were up 70 per cent [...]
Remain campaign advertising agency M&C Saatchi eyes Scottish independence referendum role

March 16, 2017

Nicola Sturgeon’s demand for a Scottish referendum may not have gone down too well with companies hoping for some stability after the EU vote last summer. But the vote, which the government wants to reject, presents an opportunity for some. Advertising agency M&C Saatchi, which today reported growing revenues and profits for 2016, will be aiming [...]

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