Proxima confirms it is in takeover talks with JKX Oil & Gas as share price rockets 57 per cent February 5, 2015 Proxima Capital Group has confirmed it is in “very early” talks with exploration group JKX Oil & Gas, after shares in the Ukraine and Russia-focused firm soared today. JKX's share price jumped more than 57 per cent shortly after midday today, and has since dropped back down slightly, although was trading up around 34 [...]
Office supplies firms to bind in mega merger February 4, 2015 LEADING US office supply firm Staples is set to acquire Office Depot in a $6.3bn (£3.4bn) deal in the hope of creating a mega corporation with the muscle to take on Wal-Mart and Amazon and giving it pro forma annual sales of approximately $39bn. The deal will see the leading US supplier of office basics [...]
Rocky market could prompt oil mega-mergers as price fall forces drastic decisions February 3, 2015 After six months of falling oil prices, analysts have pointed to a possible mega-merger between the majors. Chances of a shock deal have been heightened by firms slashing their spending in the face of oil prices that are expected to remain low for at least the next six months and possibly the next three years. [...]
The Qatari boss who launched its takeover bid January 28, 2015 WHILE Sheikh Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Saud al-Thani will likely be remembered as the chief executive of the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) who successfully led the group to its takeover of Songbird, his predecessor Ahmed al-Sayed is credited with launching the QIA into battle with Songbird’s board and owners. Al-Sayed handed over the role of [...]
Aer Lingus takeover: IAG will “engage with Irish government” to secure its support January 27, 2015 International Consolidated Airlines (IAG) is ready to add Aer Lingus to its roster, with the Irish airline's board set to recommend its third takeover to shareholders. According to IAG, the Aer Lingus board is ready to accept the €1.35bn (£1.01bn) cash offer equal to €2.55 per share, subject to certain pre-conditions. Shares in IAG and Aer [...]
British Airways owner IAG makes third Aer Lingus takeover offer January 24, 2015 International Consolidated Airlines (IAG) has increased its takeover offer for Aer Lingus. The owner of British Airways and Spain’s Iberia has submitted a revised proposal to the Aer Lingus board that values the Irish carrier at €1.34bn (£971m) according to Sky News. IAG has already had two cash takeover bids of €2.30 and [...]
Aviva to cut 1,500 jobs in Friends Life takeover January 19, 2015 Aviva could axe up to 1,500 jobs as part of its £5.1bn acquisition of its rival Friends for Life, a move which would amount to 4.8 per cent of the combined companies' total work force. The FTSE 100 insurer said it is unable to provide specifics until the takeover completes, however it will try to [...]
China’s Hutchison Whampoa pushing ahead with £9bn O2 takeover talks January 18, 2015 Hutchison Whampoa, the owner of the UK’s fourth-largest mobile network Three, is continuing talks with Spain’s Telefonica to buy its UK network O2. Telefonica was in talks with BT to sell O2, valued at around £9bn, but the deal fell apart when BT opted for exclusive deal talks with Orange and Deutsche Telekom to buy [...]
BlackBerry share price falls back after it denies Samsung takeover talk January 14, 2015 Telecoms firm BlackBerry sent its shares back down by more than 16 per cent in after hours trading last night, after denying that it had engaged in talks with Samsung about a multi-billion dollar buyout. Reuters reported last night that smartphone manufacturer Samsung had sent high level executives to meet with BlackBerry equivalents last week [...]
Investec looks to M&A expansion as investment bank gets its Guy January 14, 2015 SOUTH African specialist banking and asset management group Investec yesterday added to its investment banking business with the appointment of veteran M&A adviser Guy Gillett. Working closely with head of consumer Gary Levin, Gillett is charged with strengthening Investec’s M&A offering, particularly focusing on private companies and private equity clients. Gillett joins from Ternion Capital, [...]