Priory clinic opens in the Square Mile: How to tackle stress in the City November 30, 2014 The opening of a Priory clinic in the Square Mile should be a call to action for employers. The Priory Group’s move to open a new wellbeing clinic in the City is a strong indication of an increasing problem. Recent ONS statistics show that the number of working days lost to “serious mental health” [...]
UK plastics firm RPC Group buys Icelandic rival Promens for €386m November 27, 2014 British plastic packaging manufacturer RPC Group announced yesterday it was set to buy Icelandic rival Promens Group for €386m (£307m). The Northamptonshire-based firm is looking to partially fund the deal by raising £200m in a fully underwritten one-for-three rights issue at £320m. The remainder will come from RPC’s existing revolving credit facility, which the [...]
Friends Life and Aviva started merger talks months ago November 26, 2014 Insurance firm Aviva has been in talks about a potential merger with Friends Life for a number of months, City A.M. understands. Discussions began when Aviva chief executive Mark Wilson contacted his opposite number at Friends Life, Andy Briggs. But it was only on Friday when Aviva was forced to confirm the talks due to [...]
Autumn Statement 2014: What free marketeers want from George Osborne and what they’re likely to get November 24, 2014 With the Autumn Statement just a week away, George Osborne is already being inundated with suggestions on how to boost growth and cut the deficit. The CBI has already weighed in with its suggestions, including raising the threshold for employee National Insurance Contributions and cutting business rates. Britain's unemployment rate may have dropped like a [...]
Autumn Statement 2014: This is what the CBI wants George Osborne to deliver November 24, 2014 What will George Osborne get out of his red box when he delivers the Autumn Statement next week? The CBI got off the starting block early with its wishlist, asking for a range of measures to boost British business, including better infrastructure around Stonehenge and business rates reform. Here's what the group businesses wants to [...]
PwC, Uber and Zoopla win big at the 2014 City A.M. Awards November 13, 2014 From Legal & General boss Nigel Wilson to WPP boss Sir Martin Sorrell, you could barely move at the fifth annual City A.M. Awards – held last night at the Grange St Paul's Hotel – without bashing elbows with a few City grandees. The ceremony celebrated the brightest and best of the nation's money-makers – [...]
The G20 must not let the post-crisis regulatory storm jeopardise global growth November 11, 2014 FOR ITS decisive and co-ordinated action to deal with the financial crisis, the G20 won a lot of credibility. But as it prepares for its latest summit in Brisbane this week, we now need this forum for governments and central banks from the 20 major economies to act decisively again, and adjust the direction of [...]
Gherkin bought by Safra Group: Meet the Brazilian-Lebanese billionaire behind the £700m deal November 10, 2014 The City's iconic Gherkin has been snapped up for more than £700m by the Safra Group, the investment giant controlled by Brazilian-Lebanese billionaire Joseph Safra. Safra, which last month won a $682m (£430m) takeover battle for banana group Chiquita, said yesterday it had agreed to buy the 590-foot tower at 30 St Mary’s [...]
Hester says RSA recovery is on track but premiums dip by £1bn November 6, 2014 Insurance firm RSA saw its shares decline by almost five per cent yesterday as it reported premiums of £5.68bn for the first nine months of 2014, down nine per cent from £6.74bn last year. The company said profit for the third quarter was “strong”, due to £198m gains from its disposals of Noraxis and its [...]
What is shadow banking? New lending leaves banks in the shade October 30, 2014 Shadow banking grew by $5 trillion (£3.1 trillion) last year to total $75 trillion of assets worldwide, as the alternative finance sector took over from banks as the main source of lending growth. By contrast the banking sector’s assets stayed flat, as the industry continued to deal with a legacy of bad loans and [...]