Equistone closes €1.5bn fund January 21, 2013 Equistone, the private equity shop spun out of Barclays last year, yesterday said it had defied a tough fundraising environment to entice €1.5bn (£1.3bn) from investors for a new fund. The group’s fourth European buyout fund will target investments of up to €300m. The firm has already completed eight investments from the fund, including the [...]
Investors sell off European luxury shares January 21, 2013 EUROPEAN shares rose yesterday, climbing back towards near two-year highs, as investors bought back into relatively “undervalued” sectors such as utilities and steel as they bet Europe’s economy will improve. A sell-off in luxury stocks capped gains, however, sparked by comments from Swiss watch maker Richemont about weak sales growth in China. Its shares lost [...]
Bank recovery is unlikely but true January 21, 2013 Chief Market Strategist, Cantor Index WHO would have thought that the banking sector would make such a spectacular recovery in 2012? And who expected it would do so in the wake of a breathtakingly toxic European sovereign debt crisis, which came to a crescendo when the European Central Bank president Mario Draghi made that immortal [...]
Admiral leads FTSE 100 up January 21, 2013 As snow engulfed the City in white this morning, the leading share index was marginally up, although trading is expected to be quiet. Defensive shares were up on the FTSE 100 in early deals, as insurer Admiral lead gains, adding 5.3 per cent on the back of an upgrade from Goldman Sachs. Utility firms SSE, [...]
Crest Nicholson to return to stock market January 21, 2013 Housebuilder Crest Nicholson said this morning it would launch an IPO in a bid to return to the stock market five years after it was taken over during the housing crisis. Crest Nicholson, which primarily operates in the South of England, said the offer would comprise new and existing shares. The primary proceeds of the [...]
What the other papers say this morning January 20, 2013 FINANCIAL TIMES AllianzGI to launch UK building fund Allianz Global Investors is to launch a pioneering infrastructure debt fund in the UK – the first of its kind – to help build schools, hospitals and roads in a landmark initiative designed to create jobs and stimulate the faltering economy. Tax crackdown to target middle class [...]
FTSE 100 up as Chinese growth recovers January 18, 2013 The FTSE 100 was firmly up in early deals this morning, as it was lifted by headline natural resources shares on the back of a rebound in Chinese growth. The Chinese economy expanded by 7.9 per cent in the fourth quarter, coming in above expectations and marking an uptick from the 7.4 per cent recorded [...]
Barclays tells staff to behave well or get out January 17, 2013 STAFF at Barclays must obey a new code of conduct or leave the bank, chief executive Antony Jenkins said yesterday, in an internal memo sent to staff. Six months on from the bank’s £290m Libor fine and several years into the payment protection insurance (PPI) scandal, Jenkins has laid down a set of five basic [...]
E*Trade to name Idzik as chief executive January 17, 2013 E*Trade is expected to name former Barclays chief operating officer Paul Idzik as its chief executive, according to Sky News. Idzik, who left Barclays in 2008 and then headed estate agent DTZ until 2011, would be the US online retail brokerage’s fifth chief executive since 2009. E*Trade, which made a $157m profit in 2011, after [...]
Rio Tinto drags FTSE 100 down January 17, 2013 Mining giant Rio Tinto weighed heavily on the FTSE 100 this morning, trading down around 3.5 per cent. This morning it said chief executive Tom Albanese would step down following a $14bn impairment charge relating to several acquisitions. Charles Gibson, head of mining at Edison Investment Research, said this morning: “When a company writes off [...]