Standard Life overhaul sees investor relations boss leave July 12, 2010 STANDARD Life’s head of investor relations has left the company after a shake-up of the insurer’s operations led to his position being axed. Gordon Aitken, a former sell-side analyst with JPMorgan and Credit Suisse First Boston, departed a fortnight ago. Under the terms of a group-wide review ordered by chief executive David Nish, Aitken will [...]
High electricity prices to hurt growth July 11, 2010 HERE is another reason why the recovery will be muted. Gas and electricity costs will rise substantially in the years ahead and are set to hammer not only consumers but also manufacturers, further eroding their competitiveness and that of Britain as a place to do business. It is not market forces that will push up [...]
PERSONAL FINANCE NEWS July 8, 2010 MILLIONAIRE PROPERTIES ARE BACK According to new research from Santander Mortgages, Britain has seen a 393 per cent increase in the number of property millionaires since 2000. While 43,000 homes lost their value to take them under the £1m mark during the credit crunch, the numbers have risen again to nearly 147,000, the level they [...]
INSURANCE July 8, 2010 Q. What are the basic kinds of insurance required of a small business? A.Business insurance requirements depend on the firm’s type, but at the bare minimum you will require public liability insurance, business motor insurance and liability insurance for any employees. While public liability insurance isn’t necessarily legally mandated, most serious businesses cover themselves for [...]
London is losing out from EU diktats July 7, 2010 SO there you are. The European Parliament has just voted to locate the planned new EU agencies to regulate banks, markets and insurers in Frankfurt, in a massive blow to London. This provision may yet be eliminated from the final directive but is an ominous sign. What won’t change are the new rules on bonuses: [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING July 7, 2010 FINANCIAL TIMES ENERGY-FOCUSED HEDGE FUNDS FEEL HEAT OF MARKET VOLATILITY Hedge funds focused on energy markets have suffered a rocky start to the year, hit by volatile commodity prices and the Gulf of Mexico oil spill disaster. Many funds have been left nursing double-digit percentage losses over the first six months of the year. The [...]
Morgan Stan is top in global IPO rankings June 30, 2010 MORGAN Stanley has topped the underwriting league for initial public offerings (IPOs) in the first half of the year. A few large deals helped propel the Wall Street bank to first place, up from its number three spot at this time last year. It underwrote 36 deals with estimated proceeds of $5.9bn (£3.9bn) in the [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS June 30, 2010 CFA Institute The Chartered Financial Analysts Institute has appointed Edward Bace as head of education for the EMEA region. He joins the institute from BPP Business School, where he was professor of finance. He has over 20 years’ experience in international finance, and has worked for Lehman Brothers, Standard & Poor’s and the European Bank [...]
US HOUSING MARKET IN NEED OF HELP June 28, 2010 DAVID MORRISON CFD MARKET STRATEGIST, GFT STOCK indices have been positively correlated to movements in euro-dollar for such a long time that it is easy to forget that this wasn’t always the case. There is growing evidence that this relationship is breaking down – equities are struggling to rally, whether the euro is falling or [...]
Q&A: US FINANCIAL REFORM UNTANGLED June 27, 2010 Q. WHAT ARE THE ROOTS OF THE DODD-FRANK OVERHAUL? A. At the height of the financial crisis in 2008, US investment banks converted into holding companies so they could take emergency loans from the Federal Reserve, as well as taxpayer aid. Most of the capital distributed then has been repaid, but the public and politicians [...]