FTSE down as rally fizzles out June 18, 2012 The FTSE enjoyed a brief rally this morning – but all the gains were wiped out by 9.30am. The index had opened up 1.3 per cent, driven by strong performance from banks and commodity stocks as investors welcomed the result of Sunday’s Greek election. A narrow victory by pro-bailout parties over radical leftists had eased [...]
Shopping in style at the City’s 10 best June 17, 2012 Paul A Young, Bank 1 London’s most delectable chocolatier has shops in Islington and Soho, but our favourite is the outpost on Threadneedle Street. Just a stone’s throw from Bank, the store is a beacon of temptation, with its opulent display window and signature purple exterior. Paul, who has flame-red hair, oversees an operation in [...]
Banks rally fuelled by emergency credit plan June 15, 2012 The FTSE 100 saw rises fuelled by a rally in banking shares as the Government and the Bank of England announced plans to pump in £100bn of credit into the economy. Emergency measures to breathe new life into the economy were unveiled by Chancellor George Osborne last night with the money printing presses to be [...]
Osborne lands new job as CFO of oil company June 13, 2012 After more than 20 years of being an incredibly successful corporate broker in the City, mainly in the oil and gas space, Andrew Osborne has finally decided to take a different path. The former Bank of America Merrill Lynch adviser is joining a private equity backed oil company Chrysaor, the Capitalist understands, as its chief [...]
ING agrees to pay $619m fine for violating US state sanctions June 12, 2012 ING Bank has agreed to pay $619m (£398m) to settle US government allegations that it violated US sanctions against Cuba, Iran and other countries. It was the biggest ever fine against a bank for sanctions violations, officials said. US authorities said ING moved $1.6bn illegally through banks in the US from the early 1990s through [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS June 12, 2012 Bargate Murray Alfred Merckx has been appointed as a partner and head of the City law firm’s newly formed aviation department. He joins from Dubai-based JetEx Flight Support, where he was general counsel. Merckx has extensive experience in business aviation and has served as a partner at Sinclair Roche and Thomas Cooper. Ixaris The electronic [...]
FTSE flat as investors ponder aftermath of bailout June 12, 2012 London stocks remained flat this morning as investors took time to consider their positions in the aftermath of volatile trading on Monday. With few major firms announcing results the focus remained on the Eurozone, where the weekend’s bailout of Spanish banks appears to have done little to calm markets. Focus will now shift to Greece, [...]
Eurozone set to stay weak all year, says OECD June 11, 2012 THE EUROZONE economy took a fresh beating yesterday, with Italy confirming a sharp fall in GDP in the first quarter and the OECD’s leading indicators pointing to low growth persisting for the rest of the year. However official data in France showed a surprise rise in industrial production in April, defying expectations of another monthly [...]
Deutsche Wohnen set to raise €475m for Barclays flats deal June 11, 2012 GERMAN residential property investor Deutsche Wohnen plans to raise up to €475m (£383m) to help fund its deal to buy a portfolio of flats in Germany’s prosperous property market. It will issue up to 43.8m new shares and offer investors three shares for each of the seven they already own. The capital raising comes just days [...]
Credit Suisse braced for a further reduction in costs June 11, 2012 THERE was some positive news for Credit Suisse yesterday as the investment bank announced its role as joint lead manager of one of the larger share issues in Europe this year. Along with UBS, its arch rival, Credit Suisse is joint global co-ordinator and joint bookrunner for Deutsche Wohnen’s €475m (£383m) rights issue to help [...]