Singapore fund crashes into RAC stock market float plans September 23, 2014 RAC, the roadside recovery group that has been preparing itself for a £2bn flotation in London, is understood to be in takeover talks with GIC, the Singapore sovereign wealth fund. Sources said last night that RAC’s initial public offering timetable had come to a halt to allow talks to be held between private equity group [...]
Veteran UK lender Close Brothers surges ahead on share activity September 23, 2014 A SURGE in specialist lending and stock market activity yesterday saw British financial services company Close Brothers announce an increase in operating profits by 20 per cent in the past year to £201m. Close Brothers, founded in 1878, said full-year profit rose 25 per cent after it increased lending and rising stock markets boosted its [...]
Mapped: Which Phones 4u stores are being shut down? September 23, 2014 PricewaterhouseCoopers has revealed the addresses of the 360-plus Phones 4u stores that are being shut down, and the number of staff being made redundant as the business is wound down. At this stage 1,679 people will lose their jobs, with a further 720 people staying on to help with the wind down. Some [...]
The elder statesman: Lord Young talks motorways and tear gas September 21, 2014 If the Conservatives win next year’s general election, Lord Young will be the oldest person to work in Number 10 ever, beating William Gladstone, who was Prime Minister until he was 83. “Margaret Thatcher asked me to go into Cabinet 30 years ago. Now David Cameron tells everybody that he and I are the only [...]
Card Factory up on delivery of maiden results September 18, 2014 DISCOUNT greeting card shop Card Factory reported its half-year results yesterday, showing underlying profits that grew 9.3 per cent, but an overall £7.9m loss due to the costs of its initial public offering (IPO) in May. Revenues during the six months to 31 July rose 8.9 per cent to £149.4m on the back of an [...]
Canary Wharf’s shopping malls boost Songbird Estates September 18, 2014 Songbird Estates, the listed property giant behind London’s Canary Wharf Group, said the value of its shopping centres had reached a record £1bn in the first half of the year as the company pushed ahead with a new mall above its planned Crossrail station. The company is building 115,000 square feet of retail [...]
London Report: Stocks brush off referendum and get a lift from ECB September 18, 2014 LONDON traders yesterday set aside concerns over the Scottish referendum result and reacted positively to European Central Bank moves to strengthen Eurozone lenders. The blue-chip FTSE 100 closed up 38.39 points, or 0.57 per cent, at 6,819.29 points. Low-cost airline EasyJet’s shares rose 0.45 per cent to 1,344p after it announced that it would increase its [...]
Card Factory share price up as it reports rise in underlying profit after IPO September 18, 2014 Card Factory released its half-yearly report today, showing underlying profit before tax at £14.9m for the first half of its 2015 financial year, up from £1.8m in the first half of 2014. But the group made a loss, as the cost of its May 2014 IPO and debt-refinancing issues forced it £7.9m into the red. [...]
PwC opens talks with operators over Phones 4u September 17, 2014 SUITORS picked through the remains of collapsed high street mobile retailer Phones 4u yesterday as administrator PwC entered negotiations with mobile operators and other interested parties over acquiring all or part of the business. PwC is understood to be looking to reach a deal within a 48-hour window that closes before the end of the [...]
Ultimo’s Michelle Mone on Scottish independence: Alex Salmond is “encouraging hate” and “splitting this country” September 16, 2014 Lingerie queen and fervent Better Together campaigner Michelle Mone said speaking out against independence had led to threats against her which were “off the scale and getting worse”. She told City A.M.: “People are threatening me, saying all sorts of things about coming to my house, physical violence and just really nasty stuff.” Mone, raised [...]