ADDICTS, INCEST AND ORGIES: HOW THE STOCK EXCHANGE DOES DRAMA May 26, 2009 EXTRA-curricular activities (of the character-building, not reputation-trashing, sort) have become rather popular in the City since improving one’s CV became more of a necessity than an idle pastime. And in that spirit, keen Square Mile theatregoers will be happy to learn that SEDOS – the Stock Exchange Dramatic and Operatic Society – have been hard [...]
US consumer confidence boosts late London trading May 26, 2009 BETTER than expected consumer confidence data out of the US gave the FTSE 100 a much-needed boost yesterday afternoon, after Asia’s sell-off – driven by concerns of heightening geopolictical tension on the Korean peninsula – infected the London markets in early trading. “Following the release of the US consumer confidence data there was an immediate [...]
Collins Stewart hunts for successor to Terry Smith May 25, 2009 CITY stockbroker Collins Stewart has appointed headhunters to recruit two new non-executive directors, one of whom will be groomed to become the long-term successor to executive chairman Terry Smith. One of the non-executives is expected to become executive deputy chairman, with the potential to take the helm at the firm when Smith eventually steps down [...]
BarCap wants 65 more in M&A May 25, 2009 Barclays Capital will recruit up to another 65 bankers to its European mergers and acquisitions team before its hiring spree ends. Global head of M&A Paul Parker said the investment banking unit of Barclays was looking to add another 30 or 40 bankers in mainland Europe and up to 25 in the UK. Mark Warham, [...]
Barclays weighs up bid for BGI May 21, 2009 Talks between Barclays and private equity house BC Partners over a counter-bid for exchange-traded funds unit iShares are said to have cooled, after the bank entered talks to sell its entire Barclays Global Investors (BGI) division. Barclays was looking to attract new bids for iShares to trump the £3bn offer it received from CVC Partners. [...]
BarCap hiring spree continues May 21, 2009 BARCLAYS Capital (BarCap) continued its hiring spree yesterday, raiding its rivals for a pair of star M&A bankers. Matthew Ponsonby of Citigroup and Mark Warham will join the division as co-heads of mergers and acquisitions in Europe. The appointments continue the unit’s strategy of building European equities and M&A teams to match BarCap’s US operations. [...]
Week of gains set back by S&P UK outlook downgrade May 21, 2009 A CUT in the UK’s ratings outlook from agency Standard & Poor’s weighed on the FTSE 100 yesterday, with weakness in heavyweight oils, miners and banks contributing to a 2.8 per cent slide by close of play. The index ended 122.94 points lower at 4,345.47, its biggest daily fall since 27 March, having closed 13.84 [...]
Financials prove that what goes up must come down May 20, 2009 THE FTSE 100 closed 0.3 per cent lower yesterday, with shaky financial stocks offsetting strength in heavyweight oils and miners. The index ended the session down 13.84 points at 4,468.41, up 0.8 per cent on the year, having gained nearly 30 per cent since a six-year low hit on 9 March. “We are still in [...]
Fed’s pessimism is a blow to US shares May 20, 2009 US stocks fell yesterday, led by financials in a late-stage sell-off, after the Federal Reserve gave a more pessimistic view on the economy, tempering hopes for a quick recovery. The Fed cut its 2009 forecast for gross domestic product and raised its outlook for unemployment, tempering the recent optimism that the economy might be turning [...]
CITY MOVES WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS May 19, 2009 GorkanaThe PR and journalist portal has hired former Unilever board director Ralph Kugler as chairman as it ramps up its growth plans. Kugler spent over 28 years with Unilever, including as regional president of the firm’s businesses in Europe and Latin America, and chief executive of its Thai and Malaysian units. He is also currently [...]