AA owner gears up for mooted insurance sale September 23, 2012 ACROMAS, the private equity backed owner of AA and Saga, has taken the first step in a possible break up of its portfolio after appointing Ernst & Young to value its business – opening the door for a sale of the firms. The heavily indebted investment house has to liquidate or refinance its assets by [...]
RBS confirms Direct Line float September 14, 2012 RBS this morning confirmed plans to float its Direct Line insurance business on the London Stock Exchange in the largest share listing this year. RBS, which is 83 per cent-owned by the government, had to either sell or float the business by next year as a condition of its bailout in 2008. “We believe it [...]
As Manchester United nears its share listing, is the club likely to prosper by going public? August 8, 2012 YES Tom Cannon Manchester United’s listing raises issues at the heart of football finance. This listing values United almost 50 per cent greater than the £1.5bn it is quoted at elsewhere. But there are three ways it can be justified. First, the club has potential, especially if it can monetise its Asian fan base. Secondly, [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING July 18, 2012 FINANCIAL TIMES Four banks targeted in Euribor probe Regulators are focusing on at least four of Europe’s biggest banks as they investigate the attempted manipulation of the region’s benchmark interest rate, suspecting the Barclays traders were the ringleaders of a circle that included Credit Agricole, HSBC, Deutsche Bank and Societe Generale. Evidence of links between [...]
Rising Sun July 12, 2012 JAPANESE advertising agency Dentsu has, after a string of attempts, finally cracked the global market with a £3.16bn bid for Aegis. Shares in Britain’s second biggest ad agency jumped 45 per cent to 234p after Dentsu unveiled its 240p per share offer, a 48 per cent premium to Wednesday’s closing price. The deal –the second [...]
How to get cheaper car insurance May 27, 2012 KNOWLEDGE is power. And the first thing to know about car insurance is that getting it is a negotiation. In any negotiation, access to information is rarely symmetrical. Those with greater knowledge have more power and in this instance it’s impossible to know more than each firm. This is why you need to shop around. [...]
Boost for Close Brothers bank May 17, 2012 FINANCIAL services group Close Brothers posted a jump in its loan book yesterday as the banking division prospered. It said the banking arm showed a “strong” performance in the quarter to 30 April with the loan book up six per cent to £4bn, helped by new business in motor finance, asset finance and property. The [...]
Ally Financial’s ResCap is filing for bankruptcy May 13, 2012 ALLY Financial’s Residential Capital unit is nearing a bankruptcy filing, sources familiar with the situation said yesterday, in a move that could help the US taxpayer-owned car lender shed its troubled mortgage business but also spur drawn-out legal fights. The board of ResCap was set to meet late yesterday and a pre-arranged bankruptcy filing, where [...]
General Motors disappoints with outlook as Opel losses improve May 3, 2012 GENERAL MOTORS yesterday offered investors a disappointing outlook for the upcoming six months in North America, raising questions about the US economy’s recovery. While the world’s largest carmaker posted a first-quarter profit that surpassed forecasts, the outlook for its core market fell short of expectations. “We’re clearly seeing some improvement in the economy,” finance chief [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING March 28, 2012 FINANCIAL TIMES OSBORNE BATTLE OVER WELFARE CUT Plans by the chancellor to take £10bn a year, or almost £1 in £20, out of the welfare budget are being openly resisted by the department for work and pensions in the first sign of government infighting over the coming spending round. George Osborne made clear in last week’s [...]