Bundled debt back in vogue with first listed CLO fund since crisis May 19, 2014 THE FIRST UK listing of a collateralised loan obligation (CLO) fund since the financial crisis was announced yesterday, underscoring the ongoing revival of the once-maligned sector. Fair Oaks Income Fund, which is led by former executives at Apollo Global Management and GSO Capital Partners, said it hopes to raise $200m (£119m) by listing on London [...]
Patisserie Valerie gets nearer to top of IPO range in open trading May 19, 2014 SHARES in Patisserie Holdings closed up 0.5 per cent at 194p yesterday in the first day of full trading since the cake chain’s float. The Aim-listed company priced at the bottom of its 170p to 200p range last week but the stock has in recent days edged higher, and held up well as unconditional trading [...]
Why today is a good day for Collateralised Loan Obligations May 19, 2014 Collateralised loan obligation funds, the much maligned corporate debt funds which vanished after the financial crisis, cemented their re-emergence today with the proposed listing of a new fund on London’s stock market – the first CLO fund listed in London since the financial crisis. Fair Oaks Income Fund, the brainchild of former executives from US [...]
Fewer shoppers in April despite Easter weekend May 19, 2014 BRITISH retailers have reported a shock drop in the number of shoppers heading into stores this April, with figures suggesting lower foot traffic despite the effect of a late Easter. Figures released this morning by Springboard and the British Retail Consortium (BRC) show that footfall dropped 0.1 per cent last month, when compared to April [...]
Stock market boom puts private company sales on back burner May 19, 2014 LONDON’S booming new issue market has cut takeovers of private companies in the UK by a quarter since the start of the year, as financial backers opt for stock market listings over auctions to cash out their stakes, fresh data reveals today. Trade deals by privately owned companies tanked 24 per cent in the first [...]
Leeds is better than London for property returns May 19, 2014 Commercial property investors are better off shunning London shops and pouring their cash into Leeds industrial parks over the next four years, according to real estate research published today. The northern city is the most undervalued spot for commercial property in the UK, with industrial sites up to 14 per cent below their fair market [...]
Pedalling his wares May 18, 2014 Annabel Palmer talks to Simon Mottram, founder of premium cycle clothing and accessories brand Rapha IT’S A dilemma faced by the 1.9m professionals now cycling to work every day. Wear a suit, and you risk tears, discomfort and heat exhaustion. Wear lycra and you could be sacrificing style for comfort. But as the number of [...]
Discount retail firm B&M gets ready to float May 18, 2014 DISCOUNT retailer B&M is readying a stock market debut that values the firm at more than £2bn, in a move which could be announced as early as this week. The Liverpool-based company would follow discounting rival Poundland, which raised £375m on its entry into the London market back in March. B&M, which has grown from [...]
Carphone and Dixons dial up £3.8bn merger May 15, 2014 DIXONS Retail and Carphone Warehouse shares slid into the red yesterday after the high street giants’ plans for a £3.8bn merger was given a mixed reception. The new group, which will be named Dixons Carphone, aims to exploit the ever-growing presence of smartphones in people’s lives and the so-called internet of things – where household [...]
Westfield kickstarts new projects in the UK as retail sales increase May 15, 2014 WESTFIELD said shoppers continued to make a beeline for its shopping centres in the first quarter, with the Australian retail giant reporting a solid performance across its two UK sites. Speciality sales at Westfield London and Stratford City rose by 1.6 per cent to £828 per square feet in the three months to 31 March, [...]