Towergate in £200m injection January 31, 2011 ADVENT International has agreed to invest £200m in insurance intermediary Towergate Partnership. Advent, a global private equity firm, will acquire separate shareholdings in both Towergate and Cullum Capital Ventures as part of the deal. The deal, conditional upon Towergate raising new debt facilities through the bank and bond markets, is expected to be completed in [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS January 31, 2011 HSBC HSBC today announces the appointment of Richard Jablonowski as managing director and head of investment counsellors to its private banking division. Based in London, he will report to Daniel Ellis, managing director and head of the investment group at HSBC private bank. Jablonowski joins from Merrill Lynch Global Wealth Management where he spent 11 [...]
Fears over turmoil in Egypt weigh on FTSE as banks fall January 31, 2011 WORRIES over the impact of the political unrest in Egypt saw Britain’s top share index fall yesterday, but losses were limited by gains from heavyweight energy issues as the crude price firmed. At the close, the FTSE 100 index was 18.43 points, or 0.3 per cent lower, at 5,862.94, having shed 1.4 per cent on [...]
OUT OF OFFICE January 31, 2011 BRIDGET RILEY AT THE NATIONAL GALLERY The exhibition of works by the British painter gives an overview of the recent work of one of the most pioneering living artists. Riley has been a cornerstone of the modern art scene for many decades, and is still going strong. Famous for her highly patterned, optical works Riley [...]
FTSE struggles as Egypt turmoil unsettles markets January 31, 2011 The FTSE struggled to reclaim a morning of losses as political turmoil in Egypt unsettled investors. The FTSE 100 closed down 0.31 per cent or 18.43 points at 5,862.94, with travel firms suffering most from selloffs. Tour operator TUI Travel shed 2.62 per cent to close at 253p, while mid cap peer Thomas Cook lost [...]
TNK-BP moves to block $1.8bn share payout January 30, 2011 RUSSIAN shareholders in TNK-BP have called an extraordinary board meeting to discuss cancelling a $1.8bn (£1.1bn) dividend payment, half of which would have gone to British partner BP. The latest twist in the feud between BP and the Russian shareholders in the joint venture comes after BP said it had offered its partners in TNK-BP an [...]
Russian firms look to raise cash in City January 30, 2011 RUSSIAN state-owned bank VTB has become the latest business from the country said to be planning a listing in London. The bank is thought to be planning a $3.7bn (£2.3bn) initial public offering (IPO), as a series of firms from the country look to raise cash on the London Stock Exchange. The Russian state stepped [...]
THE TIPSTER January 30, 2011 THE EMBATTLED oil giant BP may have found support after ingratiating itself with the Russians over the controversial Rosneft deal. But threats continue to linger over the Gulf oil spill and brokers who had been viewing the stock as something of a bargain are now tempering their outlook. Combine this with waning oil prices and the [...]
BP faces legal action over Rosneft deal January 27, 2011 RUSSIAN billionaires involved in BP’s Russian venture TNK-BP yesterday took legal action to block BP’s $16bn (£10bn) share-swap with Russia’s state-owned oil group Rosneft. The four partners in TNK-BP, who operate through a group named Alfa-Access-Renova, claim that BP’s deal with Rosneft might breach earlier agreements that give TNK first refusal on any BP activity [...]
United’s keeper puzzle January 27, 2011 Van der Sar retirement forces Ferguson to line up a suitable successor MANCHESTER UNITED manager Sir Alex Ferguson is facing a summer of upheaval after goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar confirmed he is to retire at the end of the season. The 40-year-old, who is quitting to spend more time with his family, is one [...]