Finance Week articles from January 2006

Finance Week archives from January 2006

Electrocomponents calls for remuneration revamp.
January 25, 2006... Electrocomponents is attempting to push through drastic changes to its remuneration policy that could see its chief executive receive five times his basic salary in one year. The electronic components supplier, which Finance Week...

Morrisons risks pension hit from part-time staff.
January 25, 2006... Wm Morrison is facing another blow resulting from its takeover of Safeways as the troubled supermarket group could be forced to pay out millions to part-time staff denied access to its pension schemes. Between 1976 and 1989, part-time...

Rentokil shifts staff in property sell-off.(Brief Article)
January 25, 2006... Rentokil is consolidating its property portfolio by selling off two of its Surrey-based buildings and relocating its executive directors to a site in central London. Rentokil has three buildings in Surrey, two of which will be sold,...

Cairn cuts Indian finance team by half.(Cairn Energy USA Inc.)(Brief Article)
January 25, 2006... Oil group Cairn Energy has slashed its Indian finance team by more than 50 per cent after outsourcing its key operations. The Edinburgh-based company has cut the number of finance staff in its Indian head office to around 25 from 60 as...

Woolworths bolsters senior finance team.
January 25, 2006... Woolworths has strengthened its senior finance function with two new key appointments to the division. John Edgar has joined Woolworths as head of commercial finance from House of Fraser, where he was responsible for the joint running of...

DMGT seeks investor approval for incentive scheme overhaul.
January 25, 2006... Daily Mail & General Trust (DMGT) has proposed an overhaul of its executive incentive schemes, to be voted on by shareholders at the company's annual general meeting on February 8. DMGT's remuneration committee decided that performance...

SkyePharma investors put spotlight finance chief after chairman resigns.
January 25, 2006... Institutional investors are questioning the future of SkyePharma finance director Donald Nicholson after successfully campaigning for the dramatic resignation of chairman Ian Gowrie-Smith earlier this week. North Atlantic Value (NAV),...

Mapeley appoints first chief financial officer.
January 25, 2006... Mapeley has recruited the former finance head of Energis to become the property group's first ever chief financial officer. Steve Cooke left his position at Energis earlier than expected to take on the new role at Mapeley. Following the...

US-listed companies to win concession on disclosure.
January 25, 2006... European companies with New York stock market listings are likely to escape revamped US rules on the disclosure of executive pay. The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) voted last week to force companies to reveal more detailed...

P&O takeover vote delayed by PSA bid.(Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Co.)(Brief Article)
January 25, 2006... P&O has been forced to adjourn both its annual general meeting (AGM) and the accompanying extraordinary general meeting (EGM), due to the anticipated bid by PSA International. However, for technical reasons, the shipping company was...

Punch finance director awarded biggest pay increase on board.
January 25, 2006... Punch Taverns' finance director has been rewarded with the largest rise in basic salary, with an uplift of 20 per cent, compared with the rest of the pub group's executives. As part of a remuneration policy review, Robert McDonald's...

Vedanta drops Deutsche for BarCap-led debt issue.
January 25, 2006... Vedanta Resources has decided against using Deutsche Bank as joint book runner on its latest debt issue, electing to keep Barclays Capital on to raise a $725m (#406m) convertible bond due in 2026. Vedanta last entered the bond market in...

Lloyds awaits FSA approval for deputy.(appointed Tim Tookey )(Brief Article)
January 25, 2006... Lloyds TSB will appoint Tim Tookey into the newly created position of deputy group finance director, provided he receives Financial Services Authority (FSA) approval. Under the FSA's 'approved persons' regime, company executives must...

Slough Estates set for early Reit conversion.
January 25, 2006... Slough Estates has emerged as one of the first property groups most likely to convert to Real Estate Investment Trust (Reit) status if legislation is implemented on January 1 2007. Along with Land Securities, Slough could make the move,...

St James's Place releases provisions on Government VAT exemption delay.
January 25, 2006... St James's Palace Capital will increase its 2005 embedded value with the release of #4m of provision, following the Government's delay in implementing a European Court of Justice decision on VAT exemption. As Finance Week reported on...

Technical update: Defined benefit pension schemes.
January 25, 2006... Members' benefit legislation will increase DB funding deficits New regulations aimed at protecting members' benefits are likely to give rise toa funding deficiency in most, if not all, defined benefit (DB) schemes. According to the...

John Lewis appoints interim finance chief.
January 25, 2006... John Lewis Partnership has named its director of finance control as acting finance director until a replacement is found for former financial head Ian Alexander, who died last November. Ros Haigh is standing in while the recruitment...

Torex Retail loses second finance chief in two years.
January 25, 2006... Torex Retail has lost its second finance director in as many years after its last financial head left the group after just two months. The company is expected to unveil its new finance director at its preliminary results announcement in...

Pace reviews forecasting processes under IAS 38.
January 25, 2006... Pace Micro Technology is undertaking a wholesale review of its forecasting processes following changes to the recognition of research and development (R&D) expenditure under International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). Under IAS...

Scottish Widows rejigs finance team.
January 25, 2006... Scottish Widows, the Lloyds TSB-owned financial services group, has overhauled the structure of its central finance team following the departure of its deputy finance director last year. Scottish Widows director of finance Jim McConville...

NEWS DIGEST: ITV finds internal successor for finance chief.
January 25, 2006... ITV has concluded a four-month search for a replacement for outgoing finance director Henry Staunton with the appointment of John Cresswell, its chief operating officer. The UK's largest commercial broadcaster ousted its long-standing...

NEWS DIGEST: Barratt recruits former Abbey finance director.(Mark Pain )(Brief Article)
January 25, 2006... Barratt Developments has named the former finance director at Abbey National as its financial head following the retirement of Colin Dearlove. Mark Pain will join Barratt on March 1 as executive director and assume group finance director...

NEWS DIGEST: TV Corp finance head quits executive role.
January 25, 2006... TV Corporation's finance director has resigned as executive director with immediate effect. Malcolm Gardner and commercial director Andrew Brann announced their decision to step down following the company's takeover by Tinopolis. ...

NEWS DIGEST: DSG finance chief gives up.
January 25, 2006... IT and purchasing DSG International has undergone a divisional restructure that includes group finance director Kevin O'Byrne giving up his responsibilities for both group IT and non-merchandise purchasing. Nick Wilkinson, managing director...

NEWS DIGEST: Innovation appoints Hoare Govett as adviser.(Brief Article)
January 25, 2006... The Innovation Group has announced that Hoare Govett is taking over as its corporate financial adviser and broker. Hoare Govett, part of the ABN Amro Group, is assuming the roles from Robert W Baird, the UK equity capital markets division...

NEWS DIGEST: D1 promotes finance chief to chief executive.
January 25, 2006... Former Anglian Water Group finance director Elliott Mannis has been promoted to chief executive at Aim-listed biofuels company D1 Oils. Mannis was previously chief financial officer at D1 Oils and replaces Philip Wood, who left the company...

Ineos refinances for Innovene purchase.
January 25, 2006... UK chemicals group Ineos is expected to issue E3.1bn (#2.1bn) worth of bonds within weeks as part of a refinancing to cover its $9bn (#5.1bn) acquisition of petrochemicals business Innovene from BP. Merrill Lynch, Barclays Capital and...

Moody's predicts increased defaults as credit downgrades rise.
January 25, 2006... Global default rates are set to increase in 2006 after last year ended with a large rise in downgrades. In its review of the European corporate credit market in 2005 and outlook for 2006, credit rating agency Moody's is cautious about...

Chrysalis ups borrowing as publishing revenue grows.
January 25, 2006... Chrysalis has extended its securitised borrowing facility on its music publishing catalogue from #60m to #70m over an additional five years, following growth in revenue from its catalogue. The original deal, structured by Royal Bank of...

NEWS ANALYSIS: Hanson shows advantages of acting within the rules.
January 25, 2006... During its recent close period, materials supplier Hanson was able to exploit a provision in the Listing Rules and continue with a share buy- back scheme. Noelle Waugh looks at the reasons behind the recent increase in the method's...

US investor may hand a lifeline to UK pensions.
January 25, 2006... If you thought there would be some let-up this year on the dire situation of companies' pensions schemes, then you were mistaken. Weeks into the new year and the latest research shows that things are set to get worse, much worse, before...

COMMENT: End of SARs could herald return of the dawn raid.(Substantial Acquisition Rules )
January 25, 2006... Substantial Acquisition Rules were introduced to help companies avoid being taken over without their knowledge or agreement. But dwindling use could see them being revoked The Substantial Acquisition Rules, known as SARs, are the...

INTERVIEW - GUY ELLIOTT - RIO TINTO: Going for gold.
January 25, 2006... Rio Tino finance director Guy Elliott is not cut from the more traditional cloth of finance directors, having gained his stripes over 25 years within the same company. He talks to Perry Williams about soaring profits in the industry and...

INTERVIEW - GUY ELLIOTT - RIO TINTO: IPT THE COST-COTTING DRIVE.
January 25, 2006... Details have started to filter out about Rio Tinto's new cost-cutting drive, 'Improving Performance Together' (IPT), which is expected to cut millions of pounds from the company's bottom line. The initiative aims to reduce costs and...

INTERVIEW - GUY ELLIOTT - RIO TINTO: THE CHINA OPTION.
January 25, 2006... For mining companies like Rio Tinto, China's demand for copper and steel has proved a big catalyst in the recent impressive growth record. Copper and iron account for almost three quarters of the company's earnings and China, which is...

OPINION - BANK BORROWING: Turning the tables on banks.
January 25, 2006... Despite UK borrowing being close to pre-2000 levels, the abundance of cash available has not gone to finance directors' heads. As Fenton Burgin explains, companies are taking the opportunity to build improved flexibility and protection...

FLEET - FUEL CARDS: Fuelling fleet efficiency.
January 25, 2006... Most fleet issues are left to fleet managers to handle but now might be a pertinent time for finance directors to take a little more direct interest in how fuel is paid for and the savings that can be made with the right policy. Stephanie...

FLEET - FUEL CARDS: RECOVERY OF VAT ON FUEL PURCHASED BY EMPLOYEES.
January 25, 2006... HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has issued new guidelines on the recovery of VAT by employers on fuel paid for by their employees. This follows infraction proceedings taken out against the UK by the European Commission and the subsequent...

THE BOTTON LINE: Playing a waiting game.(Electrocomponents PLC)(Brief Article)
January 25, 2006... Electrocomponents first outlined its three-year strategy to turn the business around last May. However, it is only now approaching shareholders to approve an executive incentive plan linked to the strategy. Electrocomponents will be...

THE BOTTON LINE: Paper promises.
January 25, 2006... Daily Mail & General Trust's (DMGT) finance director, Peter Williams, saw his bonus drop by more than #200,000 in the last financial year after a meagre increase in earnings per share (see graph). From this year, however, Williams and his...

THE BOTTON LINE: A fair exchange.(Brief Article)
January 25, 2006... The plan for new executive pay regulation from the US Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) seems sensible and is well overdue. The much trickier task for the SEC to tackle is the relationship it is trying to forge with foreign...

Scottish Power risks strike over pension plans.
January 18, 2006... Scottish Power faces industrial action in a matter of weeks unless the company's newly installed chief executive can reach a compromise with its union over its altered pension scheme. Amicus says it expects to launch strike action...

Boots cuts finance team by two thirds in divisional cull.
January 18, 2006... Boots has slashed its finance department by two thirds to 200 staff after consolidating 10 separate finance departments into one centralised team. Boots' chief financial officer, Jim Smart, has overseen the two-year restructure, a...

Aim-bound company drops Cambrian finance chief.(Financial Services Authority )(miner Orevest)(Brief Article)
January 18, 2006... Cambrian's finance chief, recently found guilty of market abuse by the Financial Services Authority (FSA), will this week be stripped of his fourth directorship after an Ofex mining company was told his position as a non-executive director...

Hanson to continue buy back during close period.
January 18, 2006... Hanson, the building materials supplier, is exploiting a provision in the Listing Rules to allow it to continue with its share buy-back programme throughout its close period. The provision allows companies to buy back shares provided it...

BAE executive pensions to fall under general terms.
January 18, 2006... Members of BAE Systems' executive pension scheme will find their benefits subject to the same changes as employees on the main company scheme, under the terms of the framing agreement that will be voted on by the workforce later this...

KPMG and PwC named in Royal Dutch Shell legal claim.
January 18, 2006... KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) have both been cited in a new lawsuit action from a Dutch pension fund seeking $150m (#85m) in damages over Royal Dutch Shell's oil reserves scandal. The two Big Four firms are among the defendants'...

3I creates new position to allow finance chief greater strategic focus.
January 18, 2006... 3i has appointed Julia Wilson into the newly created position of group finance director to manage the day-to-day running of the group finance team. The new role will allow group finance director Simon Ball, who was appointed in...

Former Emap group finance head takes up role at UBM.(Gary Hughes)(Brief Article)
January 18, 2006... Emap's former group finance director, who shocked the City with his sudden resignation early last year, has resurfaced as the head of rival UBM's business-to-business publishing division. Gary Hughes, who resigned from Emap in April...

Gleeson finance chief retires with #100k boost.(Colin McClellan retires from MJ Gleeson)(Brief Article)
January 18, 2006... MJ Gleeson's finance director retired following the company's annual general meeting last week, having received a supplementary payment of #100,000 to his pension scheme in the face of significant shareholder opposition. Despite 14.6...

Thistle takes on fourth finance head since 2003.
January 18, 2006... Hotel group Thistle Hotels has named its new chief financial officer, its fourth in just over two years. The appointment of Little Chef's former finance director Mike O'Mahoney to the role follows his former boss at the roadside...

SVB Holdings finance director in line for #1.2m bumper bonus.
January 18, 2006... SVB Holdings' group finance director could qualify for bonuses worth in excess of #1.2m over a 17-month period as part of a company-wide retention strategy. The plan is designed to tie in staff after the completion of the first phase...

Visteon lengthens debt ratio on bank covenants.
January 18, 2006... Visteon has successfully relaxed covenants on its existing long-term borrowings, with debt to Ebitda widening to a ratio of 5.25 to 1, following negotiations with creditors. The US car parts manufacturer, a key supplier to Ford, has...

Barclays bulks up for international growth.(Patrick Hicks, Chris Grigg and Dario Garcia appointed)(Brief Article)
January 18, 2006... Barclays is bolstering its group treasury team with 10 new appointments to help support its international growth strategy. Barclays, which is aiming to double international profits to half of group income, plans to recruit across a...

Sherwood told to pay millions into pension before buyback.
January 18, 2006... Sherwood Group has been forced by the Pensions Regulator to make a #7.5m payment into its pension fund deficit and six further monthly contributions of #40,000 up to June 30 2006 to proceed with a share buyback. Laurence Ford, finance...

Royal London halves reporting costs by abbreviating statement.
January 18, 2006... Royal London is set to slash the cost of its full-year report and accounts by around #300,000 following recent changes under Company Law Reform. The UK life and pensions mutual society will now send out an abbreviated version of its...

Technical update: Payment protection insurance.
January 18, 2006... Banks to come under scrutiny over mis-selling of PPI The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) is to launch an investigation, known as a market study, into payment protection insurance (PPI) early this year following a complaint by Citizens...

Cookson wins shareholder backing for US delisting.
January 18, 2006... Cookson Group will save #200,000 a year in compliance costs after receiving shareholder approval to terminate its registration with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The engineering company will also avoid one-off costs of #1m...

Highbury finance staff in limbo over future.
January 18, 2006... Up to 19 finance employees could lose their jobs at Highbury House, the debt-laden magazine publisher, as the company moves ahead with the planned sale of its magazine titles. The company has been stripping out costs across the business...

GUS takes break from pension repayments.
January 18, 2006... GUS is unlikely to make a contribution to its pension fund deficit this financial period following large cash injections over the past three years. The company made a #100m additional contribution to the fund in March 2004 and...

Sage brings in new UK finance chief.
January 18, 2006... Sage Group has named Alistair Mitchell as its new finance director for the UK and Ireland following the resignation of John Brearley from the position in October last year. Mitchell joins the UK's largest listed software company, and...

NEWS DIGEST: McCole resigns as Costain finance chief.
January 18, 2006... Costain finance director Charles McCole has resigned from the company, citing an inability to "give a long-term commitment". He will stay until after the company's annual general meeting on April 27. The announcement comes just four months...

NEWS DIGEST: Thorne lands Ladbrokes finance director role.
January 18, 2006... Bradford & Bingley's (B&B) former group finance director Rosemary Thorne has joined Ladbrokes as finance director. Thorne resigned from B&B in October. Copyright: Centaur Communications Ltd. and licensors

NEWS DIGEST: BT recruits HBoS finance head as non-exec.
January 18, 2006... BT Group has named Phil Hodkinson, group finance director at HBoS, as one of two new non-executive directors at the company. Hodkinson and Matti Alahuhta, president of Kone Corporation, will become non- executive directors at BT Group with...

NEWS DIGEST: AIB promotes finance director to board.(John O'Donnell appointed at Allied Irish Banks PLC)(Brief Article)
January 18, 2006... Allied Irish Bank (AIB) has announced that John O'Donnell, who was appointed as group finance director designate, has now joined the board. O'Donnell has been with the group since 1989, joining from ICC Bank, taking on the role of director,...

NEWS DIGEST: Domino's appoints audit committee chairman.
January 18, 2006... Domino's Pizza UK & Ireland has unveiled Michael Shallow as a non- executive director and chairman of the audit committee. Shallow was the former finance chief at Greene King from 1991 before retiring last year. As well as Domino's, Shallow...

NEWS DIGEST: Finance chief leaves Paddy Power.(Ross Ivers resigns)(Brief Article)
January 18, 2006... Paddy Power's finance director has resigned from the group. Ross Ivers joined the company in 2001 and is stepping down from the board with immediate effect. He will leave the company at the end of January. The process to find his...

NEWS DIGEST: Stagecoach Group pension deficit.
January 18, 2006... On December 14, Finance Week carried an article about transport operator Stagecoach Group - 'Stagecoach on course to trim millions off pension deficit'. We reported that Stagecoach anticipates its balance sheet pension deficit will reduce...

Northgate reach limit in bid to raise cash for Record Rent purchase.
January 18, 2006... Northgate is set to push its gearing close to its 300 per cent ceiling after extending its credit facility to acquire the Spanish fleet company Record Rent. The UK commercial vehicle hire company currently has a 49 per cent stake in...

FRC plans to monitor OFRs to set up best practice statement.
January 18, 2006... The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) is set to consider monitoring the information companies include in their operating and financial review (OFR), despite the recent controversial plans to scrap its introduction. The FRC is hoping to...

William Hill ends long search for finance chief.
January 18, 2006... William Hill has finally filled its vacancy for a finance director after eight months without a dedicated finance chief. Simon Lane, currently finance director at Center Parcs, will join the betting shop operator on March 20. ...

NEWS ANALYSIS: Rentokil kicks off a year of pensions rethinking.
January 18, 2006... Moves to close the support services company's final salary pension scheme could yet be met with legal challenges from unions. While other companies may not take such drastic measures, they are increasingly seeking alternative pension...

INTERVIEW - DAVID JEFFCOAT: Defence tactics.(Ultra Electronics)(Interview)
January 18, 2006... A decade after floating on the London Stock Exchange, Ultra Electronics has forged an acquisitive trail yet its only outstanding debt is a modest #120m credit facility. Ultra finance director David Jeffcoat talks to Hugh Tomlinson about...

Internal audit neglect needs addressing from the top.
January 18, 2006... You could be forgiven for thinking that, given the debilitating financial scandals of recent years and subsequent tightening of rules, all public companies are focused on managing their internal controls. However, the latest research...

COMMENT: Business will feel effects of current housing slump.
January 18, 2006... Falling house-sale volumes are depriving the Government of stamp duty and it is business, already hit by a decrease in labour mobility and spending power, that will have to pay Falling prices are one sign of a depressed market but...

CLOSE-UP - ANDREW MOSS: Life on the hard shoulder.
January 18, 2006... The impact of the #1.1bn purchase of RAC on Aviva's results will soon be felt by the insurer. Finance director Andrew Moss talks to Clare Bettelley about the implications of the purchase, restating accounts in the new regulatory climate...

CLOSE-UP: MANAGING AVIVA'S GEARING RATIO.
January 18, 2006... Aviva reported a gearing ratio of 28 per cent as at December 31 2004, following a #1bn innovative tier 1 capital issue last November, which Moss used to pay down #200m of senior debt. The ratio increased slightly to 30 per cent...

TECHNICAL ANALYSIS: Tax uncertainty blocks resurrection of UK film.
January 18, 2006... Just weeks before filming begins on Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix in the UK, Noelle Waugh looks at how uncertainty over the new tax regime for film financing is delaying the industry from reversing the recent fall in investment...

SPECIAL REPORT: Why big business is turning to invoice finance.
January 18, 2006... Invoice finance was originally seen as a means by which smaller, more risky businesses could borrow cash but is increasingly being used by larger companies wishing to raise money for expansion or restructuring. Kate Sharp explains its...

SPECIAL REPORT: Factoring in more funding options.
January 18, 2006... UK banks are losing the edge in business refinancing as large companies begin to use specialist lenders and factoring and invoice discounting to build finance packages. Stephanie Spicer investigates the attractions of this approach ...

SPECIAL REPORT: INVOICE DISCOUNT AND FACTORING FINANCE PACKAGES.
January 18, 2006... * Northern Counties Meat provides processing and packaging services to local butchers, wholesalers and international food manufacturers. Managing director Paul Taylor recently bought the business for an undisclosed sum from a number of...

THE BOTTOM LINE: Playing by the rules.
January 18, 2006... During the past week both Chime Communications and Hanson have been looking at their share buy-back programs but have come to very different conclusions. Chime Communications' finance director, Mark Smith, has been hoping to return...

THE BOTTOM LINE: Power cut.
January 18, 2006... Scottish Power's decision to close its final salary pension scheme to new members from April has been met with a frosty approach from employees and union officials. The utility giant has sought to justify its position by suggesting it...

THE BOTTOM LINE: Just rewards.
January 18, 2006... Executive director remuneration is always a sticky issue but never more so than when a company is in the middle of a recovery strategy like SVB Holdings. SVB reported pre-tax losses of #43m in 2004, prompting the company's...