London Groucho Club to open a media watering hole in New York June 9, 2015 Soho’s best-known members-only establishment, the Groucho Club, is to open its second outpost in New York after being sold by owner Graphite Capital to the club’s management team. Groucho chief executive Matt Hobbs also said plans for a third club were underway. The management buyout was backed by Alcuin Capital Partners, Isfield Investments and a [...]
Insurance giant Aviva to slim down with sale of property debt June 14, 2015 Aviva, the FTSE 100 insurance firm, is said to be selling off property loans to the value of billions of pounds. One source familiar with the matter told City A.M. that big four audit firm Deloitte is currently working with Aviva. The property debt reportedly includes loans secured against House of Fraser’s department store in [...]
Richest match is worth £130m May 21, 2015 MIDDLESBROUGH stand to bank £50m more than Norwich if they win football’s richest match, the Championship play-off final, at Wembley on Monday. Promotion to the Premier League is worth £130m in extra revenue and, in the event of relegation, guaranteed payouts to cope with readjusting to life outside the elite division. But, say Deloitte, Norwich [...]
Land Securities share price rises as property developer hikes dividend amid lettings boom May 19, 2015 Shares in Land Securities rose almost three per cent yesterday, after the property developer hiked its dividend by 3.7 per cent, saying a boom in demand for commercial property had boosted its net asset value. The FTSE 100 company, which jointly owns the Walkie Talkie skyscraper in the City with Canary Wharf Group, said [...]
City Moves for 26 May 2015 | Who’s switching jobs May 25, 2015 Waverton Investment Management Andrew Fleming has been appointed chief executive of the investment management firm. He was most recently chief executive of Cumulus Group and, prior to that, chief executive and chief investment officer of Aegon Asset Management. He began his career at Gartmore Investment Management, before joining ABN Amro. EY The professional services firm [...]
Manufacturers struggle amid weak demand August 3, 2015 GROWTH in the UK’s manufacturing sector was sluggish in July, new survey data reveal, as firms struggle to export. It contrasts with robust manufacturing growth in the Eurozone, with Italy seeing the sector’s fastest expansion for four years. However, Eurozone exports also suffered from weak global demand. The widely watched UK Markit manufacturing purchasing managers’ index [...]
Lack of London office space drives a 24 per cent increase in office construction May 19, 2015 The amount of office space under construction in London rose by 24 per cent in the six months to the end of March, rising to 9.5m square feet. A report by Deloitte shows the improving economy is driving a rise in speculative building, with more and more office space available to let. A dearth of [...]
City Moves for 23 July 2015 | Who’s switching jobs July 22, 2015 Knight Frank Stephanie Gray has been appointed senior surveyor in the property consultancy’s capital markets team. She joins from Inglis Howie, where she was a senior surveyor involved in investment acquisitions and disposals across the UK. Neptune Investment Management The fund manager has appointed Joshua Ausden as head of client investment strategy. He joins in [...]
Westminster repairs could cost £5.7bn: With parliament’s palace falling apart, what are the options to save it? June 18, 2015 The Palace of Westminster is crumbling. According to leading architects, the UNESCO World Heritage site, which contains the House of Commons and the House of Lords, now suffers from “extensive” stonework decay, leaking roofs and corrosion – and that’s just the beginning. Dr Richard Ware, programme director for Palace of Westminster Restoration and Renewal, [...]
£13m Aleksandar Mitrovic deal takes Newcastle summer transfer spend to highest level of Mike Ashley era July 21, 2015 Is Mike Ashley adopting a new approach to Newcastle United after years of mounting criticism? Read more: Newcastle to pay McClaren trophy bonus The club's much-maligned owner has already allowed £27m of its funds to be spent on new players this summer – more cash than he has ever released on transfers in an entire season [...]