How to become a banker: Barclays launches apprentice scheme just for people over 50 February 8, 2015 A couple of generations ago, many people would have been planning retirement by the time they reached their 50s. But now that we are living longer, we also have to work longer to support ourselves. In some cases, that means starting on a new career path late in life. Barclays is about to [...]
Competition authorities could weigh on Ball’s bid to buy out rival can firm Rexam February 5, 2015 The scale of the potential merger between can-making giants Rexam and Ball could lead to problems with competition regulators. US giant Ball is only slightly larger than FTSE 250 firm Rexam, and comprise the two largest businesses in the sector globally. The proposed £4.3bn buyout could make sense in extending Ball’s reach globally. [...]
Last of the Miller family Keith retires as Miller Group’s boss February 5, 2015 Keith Miller announced yesterday he will step down as chief executive of Miller Group, ending 81 years of family leadership at the UK’s biggest privately-owned housebuilder. The Edinburgh-based company, which has operations across the UK but outside of London, was founded by Miller’s father and his uncles in 1934. The 65-year-old sailing enthusiast joined [...]
Boris Bike sponsorship deal: Santander reportedly in line to beat Coca-Cola as Barclays replacement February 5, 2015 Santander UK is reportedly on the cusp of signing a £50m deal which would see it replace Barclays as the main sponsor of London's Boris Bike scheme. The deal would see Santander UK pay up to £7.5m annually for seven years, putting its red-and-white branding in the place of the blue hues currently offered by Barclays. [...]
Sky staves off the cold winter once again as profits and customer numbers rise February 4, 2015 The City cheered Sky yesterday as – despite increasing competition in sport, huge amounts of industry consolidation occurring all around it and a mobile offering due to launch behind those of rivals – the firm continues to grow. With the former exclusively UK broadcaster now reporting solid growth across all of its three European markets, [...]
Serious Fraud Office must stay at arm’s length from government February 4, 2015 Other than their membership of the UK’s blue-chip share index, what unites Barclays, G4S, GlaxoSmithKline, Rolls Royce Holdings and Tesco? The answer is that they all feature prominently in the caseload of David Green, the director of the Serious Fraud Office. Britain’s principal white-collar crime-fighting agency has come a long way since Green inherited the [...]
Anglo Pacific boosts portfolio in $65m Whitehaven royalty deal February 4, 2015 SHARES in mining investment company Anglo Pacific dipped by 1.5 per cent yesterday after it announced the $65m (£42.8m) acquisition of a royalty interest in the Narrabri coal project in Australia. The transaction will be funded using a combination of a proposed firm placing, placing and open offer to raise $55m to $60m, as well [...]
City Moves for 05 February 2015 | Who’s switching jobs February 4, 2015 Berwin Leighton Paisner Lisa Mayhew has been elected to the position of managing partner at the law firm. She succeeds Neville Eisenberg, who held the role for 16 years. An employment specialist, Mayhew joined the board as an elected member in 2012. She had previously been a partner at Jones Day and Hogan Lovells. Parker [...]
Barclays, HSBC, Standard Chartered, Lloyds and RBS credit ratings slashed as states promise no more bailouts February 3, 2015 Britain’s biggest banks saw their credit ratings chopped back last night by Standard and Poor’s, as the agency believes the government is serious in its promise to let bad banks fail. While ratings are normally cut when a firm performs poorly, in this case the move reflects the shift in risk from the taxpayer and [...]
Analyst Views: What was your reaction to Ocado’s full-year results performance? February 3, 2015 CLIVE BLACK | SHORE CAPITAL Ocado has worked out how to deliver baked beans, ice cream, Jaffa cakes and chipotle chillies without booking a bottom line loss. We welcome the passing over of this financial threshold by the group. However, we may need to remain patient for Ocado to deliver material earnings per share (EPS). [...]