Russian plots Lloyd’s entry via Chaucer May 14, 2009 RUSSIAN billionaire Alex Knaster unveiled plans to buy his way into the Lloyd’s of London insurance market yesterday, saying he is interested in taking a 29.9 per cent stake in Chaucer Holdings. Chaucer chief executive Ewen Gilmour confirmed the interest and ongoing takeover discussions, from Knaster’s private equity firm Pamplona Capital, in an official statement [...]
CITY MOVES WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS June 3, 2009 RWC PartnersThe asset manager has appointed Mike Corcell to its London office to launch a new UK long/short equity fund, expected to open in the third quarter of this year. Corcell joins RWC from SAC Investment Management, which he joined last year after a five-year stint at Threadneedle, where he launched and managed the $700m [...]
Amlin snaps up Fortis arm in expansion June 3, 2009 AMLIN, the insurer that trades on the Lloyd’s of London market, said yesterday it wants to raise £76m from markets to fund a buyout of a non-life insurance arm of part-nationalised Dutch bank Fortis. The group said it has struck a €350m (£303m) deal to buy Fortis Corporate Insurance (FCI) from the Dutch government, which [...]
CITY MOVES WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS May 20, 2009 SVG CapitalThe private equity firm has appointed Lynn Fordham as its new chief executive officer and Tony Dalwood as chief executive of SVG Advisers, its advisory arm. Fordham joined the SVG Capital board as finance director in July last year, having previously held positions with Barratt Developments, BAA, Boots, Man Group and Chubb. Dalwood joined [...]
SWINE FLU HITS THE CITY (WELL, SORT OF…) May 25, 2009 IT had to happen eventually: the global swine flu outbreak has officially claimed its first City victim. Well, that might be a touch exaggerated, since the poor chap in question – Sterling Printers director Simon Pearson-Miles, who’s better known in the City simply as “PM” – only contracted a mild sniffle after coming into contact [...]
SWINE FLU HITS THE CITY (WELL, SORT OF…) May 25, 2009 IT had to happen eventually: the global swine flu outbreak has officially claimed its first City victim. Well, that might be a touch exaggerated, since the poor chap in question – Sterling Printers director Simon Pearson-Miles, who’s better known in the City simply as “PM” – only contracted a mild sniffle after coming into contact [...]
BLANK’S CHELSEA APPEARANCE SETS CITY TONGUES WAGGING ON HIS HEIR May 18, 2009 ANY idea that the downturn would affect corporate hospitality at the Chelsea Flower Show, traditionally one of the biggest, most important corporate schmooze-fests of the year, was smashed to smithereens at last night’s gala preview opening. Chelsea veterans including Marks & Spencer boss Sir Stuart Rose, WPP chief executive Sir Martin Sorrell, ICAP billionaire Michael [...]
BLANK’S CHELSEA APPEARANCE SETS CITY TONGUES WAGGING ON HIS HEIR May 18, 2009 ANY idea that the downturn would affect corporate hospitality at the Chelsea Flower Show, traditionally one of the biggest, most important corporate schmooze-fests of the year, was smashed to smithereens at last night’s gala preview opening. Chelsea veterans including Marks & Spencer boss Sir Stuart Rose, WPP chief executive Sir Martin Sorrell, ICAP billionaire Michael [...]
Meet the deal-maker extraordinaire who hopes the crisis will end in 2010 July 26, 2009 It is hard to escape the feeling that Slaughter and May’s Nigel Boardman is ever so slightly bored. Given that he is London’s top mergers and acquisitions (M&A) lawyer, and that we are still in the midst of a bitter recession which has led to a dramatic reduction in deal-making, this is not exactly surprising. [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING May 20, 2009 FINANCIAL TIMESCANNES HIT BY CUTBACKS AND CAUTIONThere are still outward signs of glamour on the Croisette in Cannes, but economic reality has gripped the film market at this year’s 62nd film festival. Some of the biggest parties have been cancelled and, for the first time in years, it is easy to get a hotel room. [...]