M&A activity still in slump March 22, 2012 NERVOUS companies have held off from buying up or merging with rivals so far this year, with global activity down by almost half on a year ago, according to Thomson Reuters’ latest figures. The market is particularly subdued in Europe, where the value of announced M&A deals has slumped to its lowest quarterly level by [...]
Glencore deal bonanza helps prop up a struggling market March 22, 2012 THE M&A MARKET might be moribund in 2012, but a handful of massive deals have helped prop up activity figures – and the rankings of several top banks. Glencore’s long-awaited advances on Xstrata in February added $48.9bn to Thomson Reuters’ M&A values for the first quarter of the year. And the army of banks working [...]
Glencore buys up Viterra March 20, 2012 COMMODITIES giant Glencore yesterday sealed a £3.9bn deal to buy Canadian grain handler Viterra. Glencore, which is also in the throes of a $36bn (£22bn) takeover of FTSE 100 miner Xstrata, has previously said it would like to expand its operations in agriculture. Shareholders accounting for 16.5 per cent of Viterra’s stock, including the company’s [...]
Glencore to buy Viterra for £3.9bn March 20, 2012 Glencore, the world’s largest commodities trader, is buying Canada’s leading grain handler, Viterra, in a cash deal valuing it at C$6.1bn (£3.9bn). Glencore, which is also in the throes of a $36bn takeover of miner Xstrata, already markets and produces crops as well as metals, minerals and oil, but has earmarked agricultural commodities as an [...]
Glencore is in exclusive talks to buy Canadian grain giant Viterra March 19, 2012 COMMODITIES giant Glencore is close to a deal to buy Viterra, Canada’s biggest grain handler, according to a source familiar with the matter. Viterra and Glencore are still in talks on price, but a deal could be reached within days at a price above C$16 per share, said the source, who could not speak publicly [...]
Julius Baer chair severs 120 year old family ties March 19, 2012 WHEN Julius Baer set up a private bank in Switzerland in the 1890s, modern skiing had just emerged and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle would speed down the Alps in a tweed suit. Now, 120 years on, the Baer family has severed its link with the management of the bank. Raymond Baer has quit as chairman [...]
Glencore eyes deal as Viterra opens its books March 15, 2012 CANADA’S largest grain handler, Viterra, said yesterday it has opened its books to potential buyers, setting the stage for a possible bidding war and sending its shares 10 per cent higher. Viterra said it has established a process for considering expressions of interest, including confidentiality agreements. It shed no light on who might bid, but [...]
BofA Merrill Lynch moves to boost weakened broking unit March 14, 2012 SIMON Mackenzie-Smith, who has been drafted in to reinforce Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s battered UK corporate broking unit, has hired Peter Luck from UBS as he strives to retain the bank’s long list of clients following a raft of executive departures. Luck will be a senior player in the team at Merrill Lynch, which [...]
Ziggo brings a ray of sunshine to IPO market March 12, 2012 ALONG with the sunshine came a hint of optimism about the future of the faltering IPO market yesterday as the Dutch cable group Ziggo revealed there was sufficient demand for its upcoming £550m share issue. Private equity owners Cinven and Warburg Pincus, advised by STJ Advisors, are selling 35m secondary shares with guidance of €16.50 to [...]
Viterra rises on Glencore interest March 12, 2012 Shares in Viterra, the Canadian grain firm being circled by Glencore, jumped more than four per cent yesterday as more possible bidders emerged. The Saskatchewan firm briefly hit a three-and-a-half year high on the Toronto Stock Exchange. It has not spoken publicly since admitting third-party interest on Friday, now known to be from Glencore. Canadian [...]