STAVELEY SNUBBED June 23, 2009 BLACKROCK rejected backing worth $2.8bn (£1.7bn) from Middle Eastern power broker Amanda Staveley to help it purchase Barclays Global Investors (BGI). A source close to the deal confirmed she had offered the sum but said BlackRock rejected it due to a lack of detail about the identity of her Gulf backers.
BSkyB ordered to pay out legal costs June 23, 2009 THE Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) has ordered BSkyB to pay the government and Competition Commission’s legal costs associated with the broadcaster’s appeal to keep its 17.9 per cent stake in ITV. BSkyB is fighting an ongoing battle to retain the stake, which it bought for £940m in 2006. The deal blocked a potential takeover of [...]
Banks launch overdraft bid in the Lords June 23, 2009 A LEGAL case to determine whether banking overdraft fees can be challenged on grounds of fairness kicked off in the House of Lords yesterday, with seven banks and one building society fighting to overturn an earlier ruling against them. The lenders are contesting a judgement by the Court of Appeal that charges imposed by the [...]
Report warns on failing firms June 23, 2009 A staggering 111 businesses are expected to fail every day in 2010, according to the latest Industry Watch report by BDO Stoy Hayward, out today. The report predicts that low interest rates and policy measures aimed at boosting the economy will not halt the rate of UK business failures until at least 2011. Meanwhile rising [...]
Mirror announces job cuts June 23, 2009 Trinity Mirror has announced that it is seeking voluntary redundancies from employees at its national newspapers as it cuts costs to tackle challenging trading conditions. The scheme will run to the end of this year, but the company did not disclose the number of jobs it aims to cut nor the savings it hopes to [...]
Travelzest boss to step down June 23, 2009 Chris Mottershead has quit his position at the helm of specialist tour operator Travelzest, despite confirmation that the firm has dropped an investigation into a potential misappropriation of funds on his part. Travelzest said Mottershead’s suspension had been lifted. The company said the allegation of misappropriation was “unsubstantiated” and apologised for any upset and distress.
OECD jobless to hit 57m in 2010 June 23, 2009 New forecasts from the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) show unemployment rising to nearly 10 per cent on average next year, compared to the 7.8 per cent forecast in April. This would mean that more than 57m people would be unemployed in the OECD by the end of 2010.
CLIPPED WINGS June 23, 2009 MICHAEL O’Leary’s Ryanair is slashing the number of aircraft it has at its Irish bases, and is likely to do the same at its UK airports, it said yesterday. The infamous aviation boss blamed taxes levied on air travel in the two countries for the planned moves. He said Ryanair will still fly 67m passengers [...]
Risk Metrics asks M&S to split roles June 23, 2009 INFLUENTIAL shareholder advisory body Risk Metrics has joined calls for Marks & Spencer to split the executive chairman role held by Sir Stuart Rose in two and appoint an independent chairman. It added its voice to that of the Local Authority Pension Fund Forum (LAPFF), which has filed a resolution for the 8 July annual [...]
Deloitte ends Setanta’s run June 23, 2009 ACCOUNTANCY firm Deloitte was called in yesterday afternoon to act as administrator of Setanta Sport, ending weeks of speculation over the future of the Irish pay-TV broadcaster. “After a huge effort by the Setanta board, management team and its backers, it has not been possible to save the Great Britain (GB) business, which will be [...]
