CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS March 31, 2010 RBC Wealth Management The wealth manager, part of the Royal Bank of Canada, has appointed Sarah Macdonald as a director, focusing on UK entrepreneurial clients. Macdonald has worked for over a decade in the financial services industry at both Barclays Wealth and Morgan Stanley. She specialises in advising high net worth clients on asset management [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS March 30, 2010 Clifford Chance The law firm has elected Michael Bates and Robert Lee as the new joint practice area leaders for its London finance practice, effective for a four-year period starting tomorrow. Bates, pictured, has been a partner since 2001 and specialises in acquisition and leveraged financings in the infrastructure sector. Lee, a partner since 1997, [...]
The celebrity chef bringing peasant food to the City March 29, 2010 I’M like a snail,” drawls chef supreme Raymond Blanc in a French accent that, 38 years after he arrived in the UK, remains as textured and ripe as a perfectly aged Camembert. “I’m stuck in my shell, and can only move very slowly.” The reason for Blanc’s despondency is a fall he took at his [...]
OUT OF OFFICE March 29, 2010 BEDROOM FARCE Alan Ayckbourn is back in fashion at the moment, and his old mucker Peter Hall has directed this revival of one of his funniest and most ingenious plays. Set in three different bedrooms over the course of a night, it follows four married couples as they get entangled in a delicious comedy of [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING March 28, 2010 THE SUNDAYS The Sunday Telegraph OCADO TO HIT PROFIT IN TWO YEARS Ocado’s imminent plans for a £1bn stock market flotation have been given a boost after a detailed research note from an expert retail analyst firm said that the online retailer would be making pre-tax profits within “a two-year time frame”. The note said [...]
Goodwin adviser Greenburgh retires from BoA Merrill Lynch March 28, 2010 VETERAN dealmaker Matthew Greenburgh has retired from Merrill Lynch and is considering studying for a PhD in English Literature after 28 years in the City. Dubbed “Sir Fred Goodwin’s banker” for helping Royal Bank of Scotland take over ABN Amro in 2007, Greenburgh leaves a gap in the top ranks of the bank. Henrietta Baldock, head of [...]
City workers slam class war Budget March 24, 2010 THE City was left unconvinced by yesterday’s Budget, slamming Darling for failing to provide a clear outline on how the government was planning to reduce its huge deficit. Banks were being sent a contradictory message, critics said, pointing out that Darling has asked nationalised banks such as Lloyds and the Royal Bank of Scotland to [...]
NEWSPAPER VETERAN APPROACHES GUARDIAN WITH A HEAVY HAND March 24, 2010 HEATED words in the media world yesterday after Carolyn McCall’s abrupt defection from the helm of Guardian Media Group to easyJet. Some say McCall won’t be too sorely missed by her former charges at the Guardian, given the messy state of the group’s finances and her recent controversial decision to sell the Manchester Evening News. [...]
London’s FTSE 100 ends down after weak oil stocks weigh on the market March 22, 2010 BRITAIN’S top share index ended slightly lower yesterday, as weakness in oil stocks outpaced firmer drugmakers, as the US House of Representatives approved a healthcare reform bill, and with miners also in demand. The FTSE 100 ended down 5.58 points, or 0.1 per cent, at 5,644.54 after a volatile session which saw the index dip [...]
Home prices hit a record high of £2.2m in London property hotspots March 22, 2010 HOME prices in London’s most upmarket districts have hit a record average of £2.2m, a survey showed yesterday. The most desirable areas in central London saw a 2.4 per cent monthly rise as wealthy foreign buyers circled for the properties. Among the biggest climbers this month was the Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea which [...]