Foxtons’ former owners book £32m dividend July 28, 2013 ESTATE agents Foxtons, which is preparing for a stock market listing, forked out a £32m dividend to its previous owners last year, its latest set of results show. Mizuho and Bank of America received the bumper dividend as part of a final payment for their interest in the business, according to accounts filed at Companies [...]
Insurance company of the year September 9, 2013 Insurance is the quiet success story of the British financial services industry. While UK banks continue to be hamstrung by government ownership and poor reputations, our insurers are powering ahead and selling to the world – prompting a construction boom in the City’s insurance district around Fenchurch Street. We were looking for companies that were [...]
New York Report: Shares lifted by better macro data and Apple August 13, 2013 US STOCKS rose yesterday after strong economic data boosted confidence, while Apple bolstered the Nasdaq after billionaire investor Carl Icahn took to Twitter to reveal a long position in the stock. Rising US retail sales in July, combined with a higher Zew German sentiment index and Eurozone industrial production, painted a rosier picture of the [...]
Walkie-Talkie awaits more calls July 17, 2013 PROPERTY giant Land Securities said yesterday that it expects the Walkie-Talkie skyscraper to be two thirds let by its completion next year, in a sign of growing confidence in the market. The City office market has seen a pick-up in leasing activity in the past year as companies who had previously shelved plans rushed to [...]
Our retail industry has a bright future – but it must adapt to survive August 6, 2013 A ROW of boarded up shops is not how we want our high street to look. But since the beginning of the recession, a high number of retail casualties have been claimed – great stalwarts of the high street like Woolworths and HMV among them. Despite flickering hopes of economic recovery, it is unlikely that [...]
London Report: FTSE rises amid signs of growth in UK economy July 24, 2013 A WAVE of upbeat corporate earnings pushed Britain’s benchmark equity index back towards seven-week highs yesterday, with signs of resilience among British consumers as the economy recovers. Kingfisher added 3.1 per cent after Europe’s biggest home improvements retailer reported a return to underlying sales growth in Britain, while budget airline EasyJet gained 3.7 per cent [...]
Before the open – 28/08 August 28, 2013 Asian shares hit a seven-week low last night as concerns over a military strike against Syrian president Bashar al-Assad’s government escalated. US markets closed down on similar concerns, with the S&P suffering its worst daily decline since 20 June. This came in spite of better-than-expected confidence indicators in the US and Germany. The Washington Post [...]
App, app and away: the best going out apps September 18, 2013 Barchick barchick.com The logo may not suggest this is the most sophisticated app in the world but it’s actually pretty comprehensive. Those barchicks certainly get around. The search tool asks you to sort by area, then by what kind of boozer you’re after (options include “killer cocktails”, music, gay & lesbian and people watching, among [...]
Why UK recovery could rescue the great British banking sector sell-off September 2, 2013 ROLL up, roll up. Britain’s banks are up for sale. This month and next, the Lloyds privatisation will compete for attention with Barclays’s £5.8bn rights issue. Then there’s the initial public offering triplets: Williams & Glyn, Virgin Money and TSB – all set to hit the market with aplomb. And that’s before RBS has turned [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 09 September 2013 September 8, 2013 FINANCIAL TIMES Capital warning from bank reformer The chief architect of Britain’s post-crisis regulatory reforms believes banks’ capital levels should be double the level recommended two years ago by the government-appointed commission that he led. Sir John Vickers told the Financial Times that in a “blue-skies” world banks’ core tier one capital ratios would now [...]