RBS in EC branch sale threat October 14, 2009 EUROPEAN Commission (EC) lawmakers may force Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) to sell off 312 of its RBS-branded bank branches, under new rules for firms receiving state bailouts. Neelie Kroes, the EC competition commissioner, is considering forcing the bank to slash its small business banking operations by 10 per cent. This would be achieved if [...]
Virgin Media’s Berkett joins the Guardian board November 9, 2009 Guardian Media Group (GMG) said yesterday that it had appointed Virgin Media chief executive Neil Berkett to its board as a non-executive director. The publisher of The Guardian and The Observer, which has been battling losses in the face of the advertising downturn and a consumer switch to online news sources, said it was delighted [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING July 16, 2009 FINANCIAL TIMES CLARKE WARNS CAMERON NOT TO CHALLENGE ‘PRO-BUSINESS’ STANCEKen Clarke, the outspoken former Conservative chancellor, has warned David Cameron not to translate his “standing up to big business” rhetoric into policies in government. However, the shadow business secretary said he “overwhelmingly approved” of Cameron’s transformation of the Tory party. “So long as Mr Cameron [...]
Lloyds aiming for recovery May 18, 2009 LLOYDS Banking Group made a tentative step towards recovery yesterday as it launched a discounted £4bn share placing, just a day after chairman Sir Victor Blank announced his retirement. In a move that signals a fresh start after the Blank regime left the bank 43 per cent state-owned, Lloyds said it would use the cash [...]
Lloyds aiming for recovery May 18, 2009 LLOYDS Banking Group made a tentative step towards recovery yesterday as it launched a discounted £4bn share placing, just a day after chairman Sir Victor Blank announced his retirement. In a move that signals a fresh start after the Blank regime left the bank 43 per cent state-owned, Lloyds said it would use the cash [...]
Bank shake-up puts EU firmly in charge November 2, 2009 AS power shifts go, this one takes some beating. After months of listening to what the government, the Bank of England and the FSA have had to say about the future of British banking, it turns out that the body with real power was based a little further away from home. For this morning, barring [...]
Bank shake-up puts EU firmly in charge November 2, 2009 AS power shifts go, this one takes some beating. After months of listening to what the government, the Bank of England and the FSA have had to say about the future of British banking, it turns out that the body with real power was based a little further away from home. For this morning, barring [...]
Shareholders back cash call at Ladbrokes October 26, 2009 BOOKMAKER Ladbrokes yesterday announced its shareholders have agreed to buy more than 95 per cent of the shares offered in its underwritten £275m cash call. Ladbrokes, which runs 2,700 betting shops, unveiled a surprise rights issue earlier this month to pay down debt after revealing revenue had dived by 15 per cent in its third [...]
Job axe falls again at ABN Amro, Lloyds May 19, 2009 ANOTHER slew of redundancies swept the banking world yesterday as Lloyds Banking Group announced 625 new job losses and Dutch bank ABN Amro revealed plans to axe up to 6,500 workers as part of its integration with Fortis Bank Nederland. ABN Amro said between 5,500 and 6,500 would be cut, though the net impact of [...]
RBS IN SHARE ISSUE PLAN TO RAISE 4BN September 20, 2009 ROYAL Bank of Scotland is considering a share issue of £3bn-£4bn to reduce the government’s stake in the bank. The move would be a last-ditch bid to avoid seeing the government’s stake rise above 70 per cent following participation in the Asset Protection Scheme (APS). It would also see RBS joining Lloyds in the scramble [...]