HMV poised to sell off its Canada stores June 26, 2011 STRUGGLING retailer HMV is set to announce the sale of its 125-store Canadian business to Hilco-owned Valco Capital Partners, according to reports. The sale of the loss-making Canadian arm is expected to be announced to coincide with HMV’s full-year results on Thursday, as the entertainment group looks to restructure and decrease debts following four profit [...]
LAWYER OF THE YEAR | June 26, 2011 FROM up-and-coming dealmakers to City stalwarts, our shortlisted lawyers represent the vast pool of legal talent that London has to offer both domestic companies and those from further afield. Our diverse list may appear difficult to compare at first glance, but with their combined talents they represent a group of people who’ve made the most [...]
Global Ports prices IPO June 23, 2011 Russian port operator Global Ports has priced its up to $572m (£355m) London initial public offering (IPO) at the lower end of the range, in a bid to get the float away amid tough market conditions. The container terminal operator will price its shares in the lower half of its $14.70 to $16.10 range, sources [...]
HMV shareholders vote for Waterstone’s sell-off June 23, 2011 SHAREHOLDERS in HMV, the embattled music retailer, have voted in favour of the sale of Waterstone’s for £53m. The vote was 99.5 per cent in favour of the disposal based on proxy votes received in advance of an extraordinary general meeting yesterday. The final count, expected today, will confirm the sale of the book chain [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS June 23, 2011 Hydrodec The industrial oil re-refining group has appointed former Betfair director Andrew Black to the board as a non-executive director, in his first public company directorship since leaving the online gaming group he co-founded in 1998. Black, who made a reported £300m on Betfair’s float when the business entered the FTSE 250 in October 2010, [...]
Russia’s lucrative residential offering June 23, 2011 WITH luxury property developer Yoo launching two new developments in Moscow this year, buying a home in Russia’s booming financial hub looks a more tempting prospect. While the heady days that saw Moscow’s property prices rocket 110 per cent in value are behind us, the more mature market for homes in Moscow is still intriguing. [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING June 20, 2011 FINANCIAL TIMES ASTRAZENECA TO OFFLOAD SWEDISH DIVISION AstraZeneca is in final talks to sell Astra Tech, the Swedish healthcare and dental business, to Dentsply International in a deal that could value the group at about $1.8bn (£1.1bn). The US dental equipment maker has outbid other potential buyers, including private equity group EQT Partners and medical [...]
Investors flock to cheap Russian IPO June 20, 2011 RUSSIAN port operator Global Ports has received enough orders for 75 per cent of the shares it plans to offer in its up to $572m (£355m) London listing. The container terminal operator, a unit of Russian freight group N-Trans, began a roadshow to drum up interest in the company amongst investors just three days ago. [...]
Business weighs risks of Russian investment June 19, 2011 AS the St Petersburg International Economic Forum wrapped up over the weekend, the business leaders and investors who flew into Russia to see President Dmitry Medvedev outline his vision for attracting foreign investment into the resource rich former super power were hopeful that reform is finally on the way, but sceptical that the Russian leadership [...]
Dudley: BP committed to Russian joint venture June 17, 2011 Oil major BP remains committed to its Russian joint venture TNK-BP, chief executive Bob Dudley has said. Dudley also said that BP was looking at cooperation with state-controlled oil major Rosneft outside Russia, after the co-owners of TNK-BP blocked a deal to search for oil in the Russian Arctic and do a $16bn (£9.9bn) share [...]