The fund manager who swallowed New Star and is looking for more March 28, 2010 We are at the beginning of the end of the financial crisis, according to the chief executive of Henderson Global Investors. “It will be a very slow recovery throughout 2010,” says Andrew Formica, the 38-year-old boss of the UK’s third-largest listed fund manager, which boasts assets under management of £58.1bn. The confident Australian is sat [...]
Grosvenor hit by £500m fall in its portfolio April 15, 2010 THE value of the Duke of Westminster’s property portfolio slumped by £500m last year, following plummeting housing prices during the recession. His property group, Grosvenor, which is renowned for its ownership of palatial properties in Belgravia and Mayfair, saw the value of its estate tumble to £5.22bn from £6.17bn in 2008. The group reported a [...]
Margaret Cole FSA Head of enforcement March 15, 2010 WITH polished marble floors and bright red-and-white logos, high street upstart Metro Bank will try to bring a glitzy experience to deposit taking when it opens in the summer. The first two branches in Holborn and South Kensington will open in early June, with two more in Kensington High Street and Fulham Broadway to follow [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING April 18, 2010 THE SUNDAYS The Sunday Telegraph BARCAP TO RAID ECM BANKERS Barclays Capital, the investment banking arm of barclays bank, is creating a bold plan to catapult its equity capital markets (ECM) business into a global top-three player in under five years. The ambitious strategy just 18 months after its $1.85bn (£1.2bn) acquisition of Lehman Brothers’ [...]
Mandelson slams Volcker March 3, 2010 BUSINESS secretary Lord Mandelson yesterday dismissed US President Barack Obama’s plan to separate retail banking from riskier trading as “too difficult” to implement. Suggesting a Labour government would not follow Obama’s so-called Volcker rule, Mandelson called for global coordination on regulation. He said: “Trying to apply sweeping rules about the structure, content and range of [...]
Strong sales at Primark boost profits for AB Food February 22, 2010 STRONG sales at cut price clothing retailer Primark have helped fuel a “substantial rise in profits” for parent company Associated British Food. The London-based group yesterday said in a trading update it expected a jump in half-year earnings and a strong full year. Its 196-strong discount chain Primark saw an eight per cent rise in [...]
What to look out for in the Budget June 21, 2010 THE ECONOMY/PUBLIC FINANCES • The newly-created interim Office for Budgetary Responsibility (OBR) released forecasts last week for growth and public borrowing. But these were based on the policy decisions of Alistair Darling’s Budget and are likely to change in response to moves made by the new chancellor. • Previously, the OBR said GDP?growth is expected [...]
Know how to value your ETF April 21, 2010 WHEN placing a trade, investors understandably concentrate on making the decision that will yield the most profitable returns. But it is just as important for traders to understand how they are investing as well as what they are investing in. This is particularly relevant for investors using exchange-traded funds (ETFs) – knowing how an ETF [...]
WESTFIELD PULLING IN THE CROWDS February 17, 2010 SALES at Westfield shopping centre were up 11 per cent last month, it was revealed yesterday, lifting some of the gloom that has dogged the wider retail market. The mall in West London’s Shepherd’s Bush also saw spending in the run-up to to crucial Christmas trading period soar 18 per cent compared with the equivalent [...]
City Eye February 2, 2010 MANNEQUINS cast a surly stare over passers-by in front of New Look on London Wall, on the day the fashion retailer confirmed plans to raise up to £650m via a London Stock Exchange float.