Investor rebellion rumbling over executive pay at Man June 10, 2009 INVESTORS in hedge fund manager Man Group could demand that the company revise its bonus scheme, after revelations that chief executive Peter Clarke was paid $14.4m (£8.8m) last year, despite shareholder return diving by 58 per cent. Ahead of Man’s annual meeting on 9 July, shareholders and advisory bodies were reviewing the firm’s annual report, [...]
City chaos as RMT strikes over salaries June 10, 2009 PANDEMONIUM hit the streets of London yesterday, after the Royal Maritime and Transport (RMT) union continued its 48-hour tube strike, which began at 7pm on Tuesday. Roads heaved under long traffic jams as thousands of commuters struggled to get around the capital without using the underground. Nervous novice cyclists wove in and out of traffic, [...]
Commerzbank puts Kleinwort Benson for sale June 9, 2009 ONE of the City’s most venerable private banks, Kleinwort Benson, is to be put on the market this week by its parent Commerzbank. Goldman Sachs has been appointed to manage its disposal and the group has received interest from several parties believed to be Standard Chartered, Royal Bank of Canada and Schroders. As part of [...]
Never again must banks ask for handouts June 9, 2009 IT is great news that 10 US banks have been given the green light to reprivatise themselves by paying back $68bn in Tarp bailout money. This is a milestone in the financial crisis; not only are banks raising their own equity privately again but they are also issuing long-term debt that isn’t guaranteed by the [...]
CITY VIEWS: ARE LONDON UNDERGROUND STAFF WRONG TO STAGE A STRIKE? June 9, 2009 CHRISTIAN DAVIS BP“It’s a complete joke. I’ve had to swallow a pay cut, take it or leave it. They’re just throwing their weight around because they can shut down London.” PAUL MARTIN LONDON METAL EXCHANGE“They are holding London to ransom, when there’s a big football match at Wembley tomorrow evening. It’s bully-boy tactics by the [...]
CITY MOVES WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS June 9, 2009 DawsonsThe law firm has hired Stephen Morrall as a new partner to its expanding corporate commercial team. Morrall joins from Middleton Potts, where he worked for over 20 years. He has a particular interest in cross-border M&A, joint ventures, banking and cross border security, international trade and employment law. Morrall will also help the firm [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS June 9, 2009 LONDON STOCK EXCHANGE (LSE)Analysts at Bernstein upgraded the LSE to “outperform” with a target price of 950p, based on the potential for cost-savings, a low interest rate environment and a strong post-trade environment to drive stock outperformance. The broker believes that consensus earnings for the group are understated and forecasts four per cent above average [...]
Multinationals facing legal piracy challenge June 9, 2009 THE military dictatorship holds down oil-producing areas such as Ogoni by military decrees and the threat or actual use of physical violence so that Shell can wage its ecological war without hindrance.” So read Ken Saro-Wiwa’s closing statement at his trial before he and eight other leaders of the Ogoni people were hanged by the [...]
Wigley named as new Yell chairman June 8, 2009 DIRECTORIES publisher Yell said yesterday it had appointed Bob Wigley, ex-chairman of Merrill Lynch’s Europe, Middle East and Africa operations, as its new group chairman. The appointment of the veteran banker comes as the Yellow Pages owner seeks to reassure investors over the stability of its heavily-leveraged balance sheet. The group – which took a [...]
Daredevil for a day June 8, 2009 ANYONE who has marvelled at the aerial spectacle of the Red Bull Air Race must surely have wondered what it is like to hurtle along in a small aircraft at high speed just feet above the ground. The airborne equivalent of Formula One, the event has attracted millions of spectators around the world. But while [...]