UK M&A report: Overall activity “relatively flat”, but British companies increased shopping abroad last quarter March 8, 2016 UK M&A activity in the fourth quarter of 2015 was "relatively flat" year on year and down on the third quarter. The Office for National Statistics noted M&A “involving UK companies continued to show low levels of activity compared with those seen before the 2008 to 2009 economic downturn”. During the period, completed acquisitions of [...]
Chemist chain Day Lewis Group secures £160m M&A funding and targets 150 pharmacy acquisitions March 7, 2016 Chemist chain Day Lewis Group has secured £160m of investment from banking partners as it targets the acquisition of 150 pharmacies. The family-owned business currently owns 277 sites across the UK and is aiming to build this number up to more than 400 by 2021. Day Lewis Group also said it aims to double its [...]
London Stock Exchange chief executive Xavier Rolet could take home £16m from a deal with Deutsche Boerse March 7, 2016 London Stock Exchange Group chief executive Xavier Rolet could walk away with £16m if the London operator's proposed merger with Frankfurt-based Deutsche Boerse is successful. LSE revealed last month that it was in merger talks with Deutsche Boerse in a bid to create a dominant European exchange operator. The two exchanges confirmed that Rolet will step down [...]
Looming EU referendum is slowing M&A activity – and a Brexit could make UK less attractive for deals March 4, 2016 The looming EU referendum is slowing M&A activity – and a Brexit could make the country "less attractive", experts have warned. Last year, there were record levels of global activity in M&A, with an estimated $4.78 trillion worth of deals announced. But despite high-profile activity around Home Retail Group and the London Stock Exchange, Clifford Chance corporate partner Patrick [...]
London Stock Exchange group revenue rises as deal talks with Deutsche Boerse continue March 4, 2016 Shares in the London Stock Exchange fell one per cent to 2,863p per share this morning, despite the company reporting gross profit rose 40 per cent in 2015. The figures The London Stock Exchange group's gross profit rose 40 per cent to £1.8bn in the year ended 31 December, from £1.3bn a year earlier. This came [...]
Wealth management M&A deals up nearly 50 per cent in 2015, according to new report March 3, 2016 Wealth management M&A deals grew by nearly 50 per cent last year, according to a new report. Scorpio Partnership’s annual M&A assessment reported there were 124 deals reached in the sector last year. This was the highest figure recorded in the eight years the tracking assessment has been carried out – up from 83 in 2014 and [...]
LSE Group considering spin off of French division ahead of potential Deutsche Boerse deal, according to reports March 2, 2016 London Stock Exchange Group (LSE) is said to be considering a spin off of part of its clearing house, LCH.Clearnet, in an effort to make a potential £20bn takeover by Deutsche Boerse, announced last week, easier. According to the Financial Times, LSE could spin off the French division of LCH.Clearnet, and may also shift control of [...]
Japanese M&A deals in the UK hit $9.5bn last year, boosted by Nikkei’s purchase of the Financial Times February 16, 2016 Nikkei's purchase of the Financial Times helped Japanese acquisitions in the UK reach $9.5bn (£6.6bn) last year, according to new analysis from Deloitte. The figure is the highest level this century and dwarfs the $0.67bn in Japanese UK deals recorded for 2014, the accountancy firm's research shows. Nikkei, Japan's largest media company, announced last July [...]
BT completes £12.5bn EE deal today – and the sector’s M&A activity could be a good thing for consumers who want more from their providers January 29, 2016 So it’s finally official: BT now owns EE. The result is a telecoms market that looks very different this morning than yesterday, with BT gaining access to the one in three UK mobile users already on EE. Existing EE customers can expect to see some exciting offers over the coming months as BT tries to persuade them to [...]
Manufacturers in the south east of England see M&A boom thanks to interest from overseas buyers January 20, 2016 Manufacturers in the south east of England are attracting the attention of overseas investors, sparking a surge in M&A activity. According to figures shown exclusively to CityAM today by law firm Irwin Mitchell, which were based on analysis of data from Experian, M&A deals in the manufacturing sector grew by five per cent in [...]