BARCAP TRIUMPH IN SQUARE MILE RELAY September 10, 2009 THE City’s many sporting fanatics were out in force last night at the Bloomberg Square Mile Relay, which saw around 100 teams of ten runners competing over a specially-designed mile-long course. Special mention must go to third-placed West LB, second-placed Legal & General, and Barclays Capital, who broke L&G’s two-year winning streak to take this [...]
Wheatcroft to edit WSJ Europe June 16, 2009 Patience Wheatcroft, the former Sunday Telegraph editor and Times business editor who left journalism in 2007 to take seats on the boards of Barclays and Shaftesbury, has been named editor-in-chief of Wall Street Journal (WSJ) Europe. Wheatcroft, who last year chaired Boris Johnson’s Forensic Audit Panel, has quit her non-exec role at Barclays to focus [...]
JJB Sports set to raise extra funds July 5, 2009 Struggling sportswear retailer JJB Sports has confirmed it is considering selling shares to raise extra funds. The group, which has been undergoing a rescue turn-around led by retail veteran Sir David Jones, confirmed it was “reviewing a range of possible options to provide additional capital.” It is understood that JJB Sports is looking to raise [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS June 30, 2009 ARRIVAInvestec was disappointed by Arriva’s trading update, which showed a weakening in all areas of the business, especially the Cross Country rail franchise. The broker said that further deterioration in trading is likely to emerge in time and it expects to downgrade its estimates. Despite a poor share price performance, Investec remains cautious on the [...]
Forward forex markets are bearish for the dollar’s status September 8, 2009 A QUICK glance at the usually lively currency markets would suggest that not a whole lot is going on in foreign exchange. Major currency pairs are stuck in tight trading ranges – the euro-dollar, for example, has been stuck in the $1.33-$1.44 trading range since June. It would be tempting to say that traders ought [...]
Bank’s forecast to be very downbeat August 11, 2009 THREADNEEDLE STREET’S latest growth and inflation forecasts published today are widely expected to be downbeat about the prospects for the UK economy, pointing to a weak recovery and the potential for further expansion of quantitative easing (QE). In light of last week’s monetary policy decision and worse-than-expected second quarter GDP data, economists expect the Bank [...]
Bank’s forecast to be very downbeat August 11, 2009 THREADNEEDLE STREET’S latest growth and inflation forecasts published today are widely expected to be downbeat about the prospects for the UK economy, pointing to a weak recovery and the potential for further expansion of quantitative easing (QE). In light of last week’s monetary policy decision and worse-than-expected second quarter GDP data, economists expect the Bank [...]
BlackRock on verge of BGI deal June 11, 2009 MONEY manager BlackRock’s $13bn (£7.8bn) bid to take over Barclays Global Investors (BGI) could be wrapped up as early as today, with advisers working around the clock to put the final seal on the tie-up. The US firm will swallow BGI in a cash-plus-shares deal, giving Barclays a 20 per cent stake in what will [...]
BlackRock on verge of BGI deal June 11, 2009 MONEY manager BlackRock’s $13bn (£7.8bn) bid to take over Barclays Global Investors (BGI) could be wrapped up as early as today, with advisers working around the clock to put the final seal on the tie-up. The US firm will swallow BGI in a cash-plus-shares deal, giving Barclays a 20 per cent stake in what will [...]
ROLET BRINGS IN THE BANKING BIG HITTERS TO EYE UP M&A TARGETS September 30, 2009 MUCHOS excitement on the markets yesterday after Xavier Rolet continued in his quest to stamp his mark on the London Stock Exchange by axing its long-standing M&A advisers. Rolet has made no secret of his ambitious plans for the exchange, which he hopes to turn into a £10bn business via a number of strategic acquisitions [...]