News

Your daily news update straight from the City PM newsroom in London

Let banks fail, says US investment sage

July 14, 2009

OUTSPOKEN US investor Jim Rogers says banks should have been left to go bankrupt. Rogers, who made his fortune alongside well-known speculator George Soros, said that while he did not begrudge banks now making a profit, they should not have received government bailouts to save them. Speaking as Goldman Sachs – who received massive state [...]
Solvency II will hit UK insurers

July 14, 2009

Most British insurers expect to spend £500,000 complying with new European Union solvency rules, according to a survey by accountants BDO Stoy Hayward. It found 61 per cent of respondents put the cost of complying with the so-called Solvency II regime at £500,000 while 19 percent predicted costs in excess of £1m. Solvency II, scheduled [...]
Increase in firms on edge easing

July 14, 2009

ALMOST 200,000 British companies are in serious financial trouble, according to the Red Flag Alert report issued by Begbies Traynor. The business rescue specialist said that while the number of companies in trouble has slowed in the last two quarters, it has risen 43 per cent from a year ago. The report, which gives figures [...]
GRIPE VAN MAN

July 14, 2009

RUSSSIAN billionaire Oleg Deripaska said last night he is considering cutting ties with Britain after the collapse of his van-making company LDV. He had appealed to the UK government for financial assistance but a bail out was not forthcoming.
GAS LEAK CLOSES L&G OFFICE FOR THE DAY

July 13, 2009

LEGAL & General had the opportunity to test its contingency plans yesterday, after a gas leak forced the firm to close its Moorgate mother-ship. City types said that the road outside L&G’s Coleman Street corporate headquarters was in a state of disarray in the morning as workers frantically fought to deal with the leak, which [...]
Philips hit by cartel claims

July 13, 2009

PHILIPS, the Dutch electrical goods manufacturer, and South Korea’s LG Display yesterday said they had received a charge sheet from the EU’s executive arm about suspected price-fixing on LCD panels. The European Commission said it had sent a “statement of objections” – a formal step in ECcompetition probes – for suspected violation of cartel rules, [...]
Emerald Energy gets takeover approach

July 13, 2009

EMERALD ENERGY, the oil and gas explorer, became the latest company in the energy sector to receive a takeover approach yesterday, but refused to give the identity of the would-be buyer. The group, which has assets in Syria, Colombia and Peru, said talks on the potential cash offer are at an early stage, but would [...]
Geronimo snaps up six pubs from Punch Taverns

July 13, 2009

LONDON pub operator Geronimo Inns yesterday snapped up six sites from heavily indebted Punch Taverns for an undisclosed sum. Geronimo Inns, backed by private equity firm Penta Capital, said it plans “a significant capital expenditure programme of £1.5m,” and around 70 jobs would be created as a result of the deal. The six pubs, currently [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS

July 13, 2009

AUTONOMYAnalysts at UBS said that they felt Autonomy’s recent underperformance has been undeserved. The broker sees likely earnings upside and thinks that the bar has been set low enough for Interwoven for guidance to be lifted at some point. It upgraded the stock to “buy: with a target price of 1,475p. SEGROEvolution Securities said that [...]
CITY MOVES WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS

July 13, 2009

RBC Capital MarketsRBC Capital Markets, the corporate and investment banking arm of Royal Bank of Canada, yesterday announced the appointment of Dr John Roberts as non-executive chairman of Royal Bank of Canada Europe Ltd (RBCEL), the main European subsidiary of RBC, headquartered in London. Roberts has been with RBC since September 2005, when he joined [...]