WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING
FINANCIAL TIMES
BAXTER BEHIND ON ORDERS
Baxter, the US pharmaceuticals company, has failed to meet its pledge to rapidly deliver flu vaccine, stalling efforts to reduce the impact of the pandemic. British officials said they had received less Celvapan vaccine than agreed with Baxter, one of two companies with which the Department of Health signed a contract this year.
BANK OF CHINA HEDGE FUND PUSH
Bank of China is planning to launch a fund to invest in hedge funds, the latest sign of keen interest in the alternative investment industry from the country. The new fund of funds will be launched next year, according to people familiar with the situation, and will be offered via Bank of China Suisse, the Geneva-based private banking operation established by BoC in November last year.
GOLDMAN FUND MOVE
The private equity real estate fund group of Goldman Sachs has made its first European debt investment since the beginning of the slump, marking the start of a new push into the distressed property market. Goldman’s Whitehall fund group has acquired almost 900 non-performing and sub-performing loans backed by Italian residential property, which had an original value of about €120m.
LACK OF DEALS SPARKS PRIVATE EQUITY SHAKE UP
The smooth handover of power by Damon Buffini at Permira has been in marked contrast to other top European private equity funds as strains of the credit crisis start to show. As the credit crunch deprives private equity of the debt needed to finance deals and many of the investments made at the top of the market look unlikely to be sold for a profit, tension is growing inside the buy-out industry.
THE TIMES
OCADO RAISES £50M WITH AL GORE IN TOW
Al Gore’s environmental investment fund has bought a stake in Ocado as part of a £50m fund-raising by the rapidly expanding internet grocer. The backing of Gore, the former US Vice-President who won a Nobel Prize for his film An Inconvenient Truth, will bolster Ocado’s claim that it is more eco friendly than supermarkets as its distribution system is more efficient and customers do not have to drive to the shops, though it has been criticised for wasteful use of bags.
INVESTORS STAGE MINOR BERKELEY MUTINY
Investors in Berkeley Group staged a minor mutiny yesterday as 27 per cent of shareholders who voted at the annual meeting failed to endorse a remuneration plan for key executives of the housebuilder.
The Daily Telegraph
NATIONAL EXPRESS SET TO ACCEPT £765M CVC-COSMEN BID
National Express is poised to accept a 500p-a-share offer from the CVC-Cosmen consortium after ruling out breaking up the transport group itself via a series of asset sales. The bus and rail operator, which is encumbered with £1bn of debt, voted to recommend the £765m bid at a board meeting on Wednesday. The board’s recommendation is subject to a few final conditions.
RSA TO STAY IN UK AFTER TAX TALKS WITH THE GOVERNMENT
RSA has abandoned plans to redomicile for a more favourable tax regime after holding talks with the Government. The insurance group, which is expected to announce a $1bn (£614m) rights issue in the next two weeks, had been considering moving to Ireland.
WALL STREET JOURNAL
BLACKSTONE, LION CAPITAL IN TALKS TO SELL ORANGINA TO SUNTORY
Japanese beverage giant Suntory Holdings is close to a deal to acquire Orangina SAS, maker of the famed soft drink, according to people familiar with the matter. A deal for Orangina, which could be reached this week, would mark the latest ownership twist for the closely held firm, which bottles, distributes and franchises a range of soft drinks, including its trademark sparkling orange beverage.
JUDGE ORDERS UBS TO SET ASIDE $35M IN HEDGE- FUND CASE
A Connecticut judge ordered UBS to set aside $35.5m (£21m) to cover a potential judgment against it in a case involving complex debt securities that the firm’s employees called “crap” and “vomit”, according to the judge’s Tuesday decision.