A new breed of super-entrepreneurs could leave HS2 looking antiquated September 8, 2013 FOR A mode of transport that first arrived in the nineteenth century, railways have been remarkably resilient. All three major political parties currently support the creation of a new high speed rail network, High Speed 2 (HS2), a £43bn plan to connect London Euston, Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester, Sheffield, and the East Midlands in two phases. [...]
Phones 4u sells off UK’s biggest mobile phone insurer for $160m September 5, 2013 HIGH STREET retailer Phones 4u yesterday dialled up a £100m deal to sell the UK’s biggest mobile insurer to a Wall Street-listed insurance giant. The phone shop’s parent company, Phones 4u Finance, will sell Crewe-based Lifestyle Services Group (LSG) to Assurant for $160m (£107m) after being approached by Assurant to buy the business earlier this [...]
Inside Track: Foxtons nears a crucial decision on its upcoming float September 5, 2013 THE FORTHCOMING flotation of Foxtons, the ultra entrepreneurial London-focused estate agency, is to move a step closer this weekend with the setting of a price range for the new shares that will shortly be coming onto the stock market if all goes well. Management’s investor roadshow begins properly on Monday and will take in London, [...]
David Lloyd sold to private equity fund September 5, 2013 HEALTH and fitness club David Lloyd Leisure (DLL) yesterday outlined an ambitious £50m expansion plan after being sold to UK private equity firm TDR Capital for just under £750m. The business, founded by former tennis ace David Lloyd over 30 years ago, said it has over 20 new centres in the pipeline across the country [...]
Foresight plans to raise £200m in London listing of solar fund September 4, 2013 ALTERNATIVE asset manager Foresight plans to float its solar fund on the main market of the London Stock Exchange in a bid to raise up to £200m. It is hoping to launch the float later this month with a listing expected as soon as October. Retail investors, as well as non-specialist institutions, will be able [...]
Before the open – 04/09 September 4, 2013 London's leading index, the FTSE 100, is expected to open flat this morning. #FTSE called flat to slightly up ahead of open, stocks to watch include Ryanair, Ashtead Group & Hargreaves Landsown. — Sales Traders CMC UK (@SalesTradersCMC) September 4, 2013 European services data is expected to show that sector order books have returned to [...]
City Moves for 04 September 2013 | Who’s switching jobs September 3, 2013 SJ Berwin The law firm has appointed Paul Stothard as a partner in its litigation practice. He was most recently at Dentons, where he was a partner in its litigation and dispute resolution group. Prior to that, he was an associate at Denton Wilde Sapte, and Allen & Overy. Quadrant Estates James Bidwell has joined the property [...]
Conviviality Retail buys Wine Rack September 2, 2013 Conviviality Retail, the Bargain Booze chain owner that recently listed on Aim, has bought a London-based off-licence chain to boost its footprint in the capital. The north west-based company announced yesterday it has acquired Wine Rack and its 22 stores for £1.65m in cash. Conviviality, which runs over 610 convenience stores, raised around £64m in [...]
CentralNic raises £7m in float on Alternative Investment Market September 2, 2013 INTERNET domain name provider CentralNic Group began trading on the junior stock market yesterday after raising £7m. The firm, which sells premium domains with endings such as uk.com and eu.com, hopes to cash in on rising demand for personalised web addresses. “The response from investors to the IPO has reaffirmed our belief that CentralNic is [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 2 September 2013 September 1, 2013 FINANCIAL TIMES China eyes UK nuclear controls The state-owned Chinese nuclear group that is in talks to invest in Britain’s new nuclear programme wants greater operational control of any new plants it finances, potentially creating a national security headache for the government. China General Nuclear Power Group (CGN), is in talks with EDF of France [...]