First Capital Connect comes last in passenger satisfaction poll as Virgin retains the top spot February 18, 2013 FIRST Capital Connect delivers the worst train service in Britain, according to a survey of thousands of passengers by consumer group Which?. Virgin retained the top spot in a poll about value, punctuality and reliability, with a satisfaction score of 67 per cent, closely followed by the London Overground and C2C. This compares to just [...]
Best of the Brokers February 7, 2013 LANCASHIRE HOLDINGS Lloyd’s of London insurer Lancashire has been upgraded to “add” by Nick Johnson of Numis, with a target price of 915p. He points out the FTSE 250 company has a “trend to pay out 100 per cent of earnings”. He sees room for an improved return on net assets thanks to “a more [...]
Rolex wins title of consumer superbrand for a second year February 24, 2013 LUXURY watch-maker Rolex has come top of an annual chart of consumer “superbrands” for the second year running, leaving Apple and Microsoft trailing in second and third place, a poll published today shows. The iPad and iPhone-maker jumped 16 places to clinch second place, missing out on the top spot to Rolex. Over 2,900 British [...]
Scots housebuilder Cala Group mulls sell-off to Patron Capital January 20, 2013 UPMARKET housing developer Cala Group has a new front runner in the race to snap up the 138 year-old firm – private equity shop Patron Capital led by ex-Lehman Brothers banker Keith Breslauer. Cala Group, the first Scottish company ever to list on the London Stock Exchange, is in exclusive talks with Breslauer’s Patron Capital [...]
FTSE funds help raise £1bn for infrastructure February 18, 2013 A HOST of FTSE 100 retirement funds yesterday revealed they had raised £1bn to plough into the UK’s creak- ing infrastructure as inf luential investor Edmund Truell called on government to do more to boost building investment. Pension schemes run by BAE Systems, BT, Lloyds TSB and British Airways are among ten schemes launching a [...]
After a three-year wait … the Walbrook secures its first tenants January 24, 2013 THE WALBROOK Building opposite Cannon Street station has finally clinched its first two tenants, nearly three years since it was first built. Property developer Minerva, said it has secured the first deal with insurance broker, Arthur J Gallagher, which has taken offices on the ground floor and the whole of the seventh floor amounting to [...]
Lloyds of London sinks to £697m loss triggered by disasters September 21, 2011 The Lloyd’s of London insurance market crashed to a first-half loss of £697m, weighed down by record claims from natural catastrophes including the March 11 Japanese earthquake and tsunami. The loss compares with a profit of £628m a year earlier, and reflects a total of £6.7bn in claims absorbed during the first half, making it [...]
City’s brightest named in legal hot 100 line-up January 28, 2013 SOME of the City’s top lawyers have been named on the industry’s annual Hot 100 list, including the silk helping Guardian Care Homes pursue Barclays for Libor-related mis-selling and the partner leading Co-op through its bid for Lloyds bank branches. The Lawyer magazine’s 2013 list, released yesterday, singles out 100 legal names to watch this [...]
City Moves for 25 February 2013 | Who’s switching jobs February 24, 2013 Eversheds The law firm has announced the appointment of Greg Hammond as partner responsible for building its energy and corporate capabilities. Hammond joins the firm from Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, where he was a partner in its cross-border transactions practice. He is a member of the legal advisory taskforce to the Energy Charter [...]
Business surveys suggest third recession is starting January 13, 2013 THE UK may be falling into its third recession in four years, marking the third dip since the credit crunch, two business surveys indicated this morning. The UK returned to growth in the third quarter of 2012. However, British firms’ output weakened to 93.1 in the fourth quarter of 2012, accountants BDO said, from 93.4 [...]