Shares in troubled music, books and games retailer HMV have risen today after it emerged that it has secured a new refinancing deal with its lenders. The deal, worth £220 million, will see the taxpayer taking a stake in the company. The group’s main lenders are taxpayer-backed Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds Banking Group. [...]
The US Treasury has disposed of its remaining stake in Citigroup – bringing a net profit to taxpayers of $12 billion (£7.6 billion). The banking giant, which was badly hit during the financial crisis, was the recipient of a $45 billion cash bailout in 2008 and 2009, with the funds coming from the Troubled Asset [...]
Bank of America Merrill Lynch and PNC Financial Services are to reduce their stakes in BlackRock – the world’s largest money manager. Bank of America will dispose of 42 million shares via a secondary offering worth more than $7 billion (£4.35 billion). Bank of America has been exploring ways to offload the stake as it [...]
Banking giant HSBC is in talks with South African insurer Old Mutual about acquiring a majority stake in Nedbank Group – South Africa’s fourth biggest bank. The media has speculated that the price could be around £4.5 billion for a 52% stake, in the latest in a series of assets Old Mutual has been forced [...]
Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is taking the necessary steps so the Government can start selling its 83% stake in the bank. According to reports, chief executive Stephen Hester was quoted as saying: The sale “won’t be conducted in one go….but I would be disappointed if there would not be the first steps towards privatisation [...]
Swiss pharmaceuticals group, Novartis International, has started the New Year on a high with one of Europe’s largest ever takeovers. Novartis has agreed to take full control of Alcon, a leading maker of eye care products, in a deal worth $40 billion (£24.8 billion). Novartis bought 25% of eye care specialist Alcon, which is also [...]
The announcement that US car giant General Motors (GM) abandoned plans to sell a majority stake in its European car business Opel, including its UK brand Vauxhall, has led to a protest by thousands of the 25,000 workers at Opel’s four factories. In March, GM announced plans to offload Vauxhall and sister company, Germany-based Opel, [...]
A major overhaul of the UK banking industry has been confirmed by the Treasury today with plans for Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and Lloyds Banking Group to sell off bank branches. The shake-up comes as the Government hopes to create more competition within the industry. The Government holds a 70% stake in RBS and [...]
Lloyds Banking Group has today confirmed it is considering a rights issue, in order to repair its balance sheet which was battered following the takeover of rival HBOS, as well as avoiding participating in the Government’s Asset Protection Scheme (APS). There has been speculation that the bank, which is 43% owned by the taxpayer, has [...]
Japan Airlines (JAL) has announced plans to cut its operating schedule and reduce headcount by almost 7,000. The loss-making airline said that a total of 6,800 jobs will go as it embarks on a cost-cutting exercise and is making plans for fuel-efficiency and a focus on business customers. The news comes as there are rumours [...]
There is now a definitive separation between car firms Daimler and Chrysler after the German carmaker has reached a deal to give up its 19.9% stake in the US firm. The agreement will also see Daimler forgive repayment of the loans extended to Chrysler, which were already written off in the 2008 financial statements, said [...]
It has been reported that the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is to axe 9,000 jobs, with 4,500 positions to go in the UK. The job losses are part of a £2.5 billion cost-cutting programme, scheduled to take place over the next two years. The move has been described as “truly devastating” by unions. The [...]
Smoothie maker Innocent is to receive £30 million from Coca-Cola, in return for a 20 percent stake, which will be used to drive the business and extend into European markets. Innocent has been the recipient of heavy criticism during the negotiations, however co-founder Richard Reed has hit out at the financing deal saying that the [...]
Staff at Lloyds Banking Group are in line for an £80 million cash bonus in spite of the taxpayer stake increasing from 43% to 65% after it signed up to the Government’s Asset Protection Scheme over the weekend. The scheme, which insures against losses arising from toxic assets, will see Lloyds commit to lending at [...]
The US Government has increased its stake in troubled bank Citigroup from 8% to 36%, the US Treasury announced on Friday. The higher stake means the US Government has a powerful influence over the bank but the board of Citigroup have insisted that they are still maintaining day-to-day control of the bank. The deal is [...]
According to the Wall Street Journal, the US Government is in talks with Citigroup to increase its stake in the struggling bank. Shares in Citigroup plummeted for a sixth consecutive session last Friday amid speculation that it would have to be nationalised in order to survive. It is believed that the Government could end up [...]
According to reports, the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is set to announce the sale of its 4.3% stake in Bank of China, which is valued at over £1.8 billion. The rumour of the sale has brought with it speculation that similar transactions will arise. Late last year, Swiss bank UBS sold its entire 1.5% [...]
Estate agency, Connells, is selling its 17% stake in Rightmove. The decision by the UK’s second-largest residential property agent is a further ill wind for the housing market, particularly as Connells’ 21 million shares in the website are being offered at a discount on the market price. Connells was instrumental in setting up Rightmove eight [...]
M&S Money launches 3% cash ISA
M&S Money has launched an Advantage Cash ISA paying 3 per cent, and which allows transfers in from other ISAs. It can be opened with a minimum deposit of £100 lump sum followed by minimum monthly deposits of £25. The 3% rate is variable, but there is no short-term bonus so the return won’t plummet [...]
Google suspends UK Compare Mortgages site
Google has closed its UK mortgage comparison site which it launched in July last year, after it proved to be less popular than expected. Mortgage comparison sites are designed to allow visitors to compare mortgages quickly and easily without having to visit each lender’s individual site. Google was competing with several well-established comparison sites, including [...]
AA launches ‘black-box’ policy for young drivers
The AA is launching an innovative car insurance policy called Drivesafe which could help younger drivers save up to £850 a year. Younger drivers already pay substantially higher premiums than other motorists and these costs are increasing. A new study by Confused.com suggests insurance costs for younger driver have gone up by 5.7 per cent [...]
ATOL scheme updated to protect online bookers
ATOL, a financial protection scheme managed by the Civil Aviation Authority, is being extended to protect up to six million more holidays a year. The scheme ensures that holiday makers do not lose out financially if a travel company collapses, and that they are not stranded abroad. An increase in the number of holidays booked [...]
Home repossessions lowest for four years
The number of UK homes repossessed fell to 36,200 in 2011, significantly below the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ forecast of 40,000, and lower than 2010 when 37,100 homes were repossessed. With interest rates remaining low and lenders adopting a sympathetic attitude to customers in financial difficulty, repossessions fell to their lowest level since 2007. However, [...]
Monthly pay lasting just 17 days
Workers are running out of money just 17 days after receiving their monthly pay, according to new research by the Halifax bank. This means that the average UK worker spends half the month worrying about money. The study, based on the responses of more than 2,000 adults, found that 10 per cent of workers start [...]
Women disadvantaged by auto-enrolment changes
Government proposals to increase the auto-enrolment threshold to £10,000 could put 1.8 million women at risk of missing out on a pension, the TUC has warned. Under the auto-enrolment scheme, which will be phased in from October, private sector employers will automatically enrol workers between the age of 22 years and the state pension age, [...]
Emergency household repairs company Homeserve is taking longer than expected to get back on track after its operations were suspended last October. The company expected customer numbers to fall by 5% this year but it has increased this estimate to 8% and announced the loss of 200 jobs. It estimates that renewal revenue in 2013 [...]
Sale rumoured for Yorkshire and Clydesdale banks
There is growing speculation that National Australia Bank (NAB) may sell Yorkshire Bank and Clydesdale Bank after the Australian parent company announced a strategic review of the two banks’ operations. The Australian economy is performing well and NAB reported strong profits for the final quarter of 2011 but with the UK economy at a virtual [...]
More women experiencing debt difficulties
Women in Debt, which offers female-focused debt advice, has warned that the number of UK women facing serious debt has grown significantly over recent years. The organisation believes that more women will need advice on solving debt problems in the future because they are building up an unsustainable level of indebtedness. Women in Debt’s director, [...]
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