PRESS DIGEST - British business - July 3
The Times
PRETTEJOHN TO LEAVE PRU AFTER LOSING OUT ON TOP JOB
The chief executive of Prudential's (PRU.L) UK division, Nick Prettejohn, has resigned from the insurer after failing to secure the position of group chief executive. The replacement for current group chief executive, Mark Tucker, will be the former head of Aviva's (AV.L) European arm, Tidjane Thiam. While Prudential would not be drawn on whether Prettejohn had another job, insiders claimed that he was still on good terms with both the directors and Thiam.
FRANCE IMPORTS UK ELECTRICITY AFTER HEATWAVE SHUTS DOWN POWER.
Britain is exporting significant amounts of electricity to France after the summer heatwave put one third of the country's nuclear reactors out of action. With temperatures in France soaring above 30 degrees Celsius this week, reactors at state-owned EDF (EDF.PA) are generating their lowest amount of electricity in six years, forcing the French producer to turn to Britain for additional supplies. A spokesman for National Grid (NG.L) said that electricity flows from Britain to France during peak periods yesterday were as high as 1,000 megawatts, which is roughly equivalent to the output of the Dungeness nuclear power plant on the Kent coast.
PRIVATE EQUITY BOOST
Private equity lender Intermediate Capital (ICP.L) has raised 351 million pounds ($577.1 million) in a rights issue in order to take advantage of investment opportunities. The firm said that it had extended 395 million pounds of debt until 2013, and that the fundraising would allow it to participate in the refinancing of existing buyout transactions.
TEMPUS
Greene King(GNK.L) [Hold on]
Wellstream(WSML.L) [A premium to its peers, avoid]
NCC Group [Buy on weakness]
The Daily Telegraph
HEDGE FUND TCI MAKES 555 MILLION POUNDS
The latest accounts from The Children's Investment Trust reveal the activist hedge fund saw its annual profits leap to 555.9 million pounds immediately prior to the start of the credit crunch. The 73 per cent rise also resulted in a doubling of controlling partner and founder Chris Hohn's pay to 1.7 million pounds. Hohn, who is thought to have donated his pay to TCI's charity, claimed that the potential for future profitability remains but urged caution, stating: 'Current market conditions will have a material impact on the income stream of the partnership over the following 12 months'.
DOMINO'S SPOTS A TASTY TAX OPPORTUNITY
Pizza delivery chain Domino's has acquired a business leasing unit from investment bank Dresdner Kleinwort KWFTF.PK. The unit, Dresdner Kleinwort Leasing March (2) Limited, primarily leases office equipment and vehicles to multinational corporations. Leasing structures were popular with businesses during the 1980s and 1990s, but they have become less common in recent years due to changes in the way which they are treated by tax authorities. Mike Warburton, a tax partner at Grant Thornton, said, "It is a real throwback to the old days when companies entered into leasing contracts in order to obtain the tax write-offs."
