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’JC Flower’s UK boss fined and banned for fake invoice scheme
Extraordinary, this — so we’ll just slam up the details from the FSA:
The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has today fined Ravi Shankar Sinha £2.867 million for fraudulently obtaining £1.367 million for himself from a company owned by a private equity fund advised by JC Flowers by means of a fictitious invoicing scheme.
Flowers: The decline of a dealmaker
It’s almost enough to make you wonder just how savvy those high-flying uber-deal makers of the 1990s and early 2000s really were — as opposed to how lucky.
Times change and so do the deals. But even with the chips down and the odds distinctly discouraging,
Snap news
Breaking pre-market news on Tuesday,
- ITV confirms move into pay-TV with Sky agreement — statement and statement.
- Xstrata operating Ebitda up 67 per cent to $4.494bn in first half — statement.
Flowers pops up in UK mutual land
Compared to those high-flying days of yesteryear, über-deal maker Chris Flowers has been rather quiet – and we’d venture, not overly successful – as of late.
Among the more notable in a series of rather underwhelming deals have been his huge investment,
Snap news
Breaking pre-market news on Monday,
- BP spill response cost $3.5bn to date, $165m claims paid — statement.
- Falkland Oil & Gas says no hydrocarbons found at Toroa well — statement.
- Kent Reliance confirms in restructure talks with JC Flowers — statement.
Jon Corzine takes the reins at MF Global
Shares in MF Global rallied some 15 per cent in aftermarket trade on Tuesday on news that Jon Corzine would be taking over as chairman and chief executive.
Corzine, a former chairman at Goldman Sachs and the 54th governor of New Jersey,
JC Flowers adds firepower in UK
JC Flowers, the US private equity group run by dealmaker Chris Flowers, has strengthened its London team after appointing Sir Callum McCarthy, former chairman of the UK’s FSA watchdog body, as European chairman.
HRE chief urges ‘pragmatism’
The chief executive of Hypo Real Estate says that a German government plan to enforce a controversial “squeeze-out” of minority shareholders next week is the only option for the troubled bank. Axel Wieandt said the move,
Macquarie in talks for Fox-Pitt Kelton
Australia’s Macquarie Group is in talks about a takeover of Fox-Pitt Kelton, a small UK-based financial services firm partly owned by private equity firm JC Flowers, reports DealJournal. While no deal has been finalised,
Flowers works at mending a broken reputation
The first time Chris Flowers invested in Tokyo-based Shinsei Bank in 2000, he went on to personally make about $1bn in what was considered one of the best deals of all time. Now a proposed merger between Shinsei and a second Japanese bank,
Shinsei, Aozora to reveal merger plans
Shinsei and Aozora, two lossmaking Japanese banks backed by US buyout groups JC Flowers and Cerberus, are on Wednesday of their merger. The deal will create Japan’s sixth-largest banking group and help consolidate the Japanese government’s holdings.
Shinsei confirms Aozora talks
Japan’s Shinsei and Aozora banks – which are part-owned by US buyout groups – confirmed on Thursday they are in merger talks to create the country’s sixth-biggest banking group, with assets of about Y18,000bn ($187bn).
Flowers rejects Berlin’s offer for HRE
JC Flowers and the German government are heading for a potential clash after the US buyout firm rejected Berlin’s offer to buy shares in Hypo Real Estate. The response moves the German government closer to a controversial expropriation of JC Flowers’ holdings in the property lender,
Berlin launches offer for Hypo Real Estate
By James Wilson in Frankfurt
Germany’s government on Thursday launched its first takeover offer for a bank stricken by the financial crisis, saying it wanted to acquire all of Hypo Real Estate through an offer to shareholders.
Weekend catch-up
In case you missed these stories from the Weekend FT:
- RBS starts Asian asset sale
RBS, the stricken UK bank, started the divestment process for many of its Asian assets on Thursday, distributing an official sale document covering businesses in 12 countries.
Berlin, Flowers clash over HRE
The German government is at loggerheads with investor Christopher Flowers about the rescue of stricken lender Hypo Real Estate, in which a group led by his US buyout firm holds 24.9%, the single largest stake.
Buy-out groups eye Irish banks
Apax Partners has joined a handful of private equity groups running the rule over the cash-strapped Irish banking sector, as the UK-based buy-out house considers a politically sensitive investment in Bank of Ireland.
Morgan Stanley’s talking to CIC, not Citic
Is Morgan Stanley really in talks with Citic, as reported by CNBC?
Not quite, according the FT’s Beijing Correspondent, Jamil Anderlini.
A well-placed person at Citic Securities told the FT that talk of the brokerage having anything to do with a Morgan Stanley bailout or any dealings whatsoever was unfounded market rumour.
AIG rejects buyout groups, asks Fed for $40bn
AIG, the US insurance giant that saw its shares plunge 31% on Friday alone, has asked the Federal Reserve for a $40bn bridge loan as part of an emergency plan that includes selling off some of its most valuable assets and raising more capital,
Lehman bidders named, Treasury and Fed to resist public subsidy
Bank of America is leading a consortium that includes JC Flowers and China Investment Corp, the Chinese sovereign wealth fund, in a joint bid for Lehman Brothers.
Here’s the breaking FT story from Henny Sender,
KKR leads race for Lehman assets
KKR is leading the bidding for a controlling stake in Lehman Brothers’ asset management business, while Blackstone Group has backed away, reports Reuters, citing CNBC. Lehman is looking to sell at least part of its asset management business;
Buyout firms eye bank stakes
Key private equity executives believe they have found ways to overcome US rules that bar investors who hold more than 24.9% of a bank from owning other kinds of companies. The rules were originally aimed at prevent conglomerates taking control of banks but with banks trading at historically low valuations,
JC Flowers looks to Germany after HRE deal
JC Flowers is ready to pursue more opportunities to buy assets in the German financial sector, the US buyout group said after it led a successful a bid to take a substantial stake in Hypo Real Estate, the property lender.
Hypo Real says JC Flowers offer too low
The €1.1bn offer from JC Flowers for almost a quarter of Hypo Real Estate undervalues the German property finance group, according to its management and board, which has decided not to recommend the offer to shareholders.
Flowers to inject €300m into HSH Nordbank
JC Flowers is preparing to inject about €300m ($470m) of fresh equity into HSH Nordbank, despite the German bank’s failure to have an IPO this year. The measure will maintain the US buyout group’s stake in the state-controlled Landesbank,
MF Global, hit by wheat trades, picks Flowers
MF Global, one of the world’s largest commodities brokers, reported a Q1 net loss of $71.1m due primarily to unauthorised wheat trades carried out by an employee in its Memphis office. The loss compared with last year’s Q1 profit of $76.1m.
Shinsei cuts forecast for fourth time
Shinsei Bank has revised its group earnings forecast for the fourth time, reflecting the volatility of its businesses and deterioration in the overall market environment. Shinsei, 32.6% owned by a group of investors led by JC Flowers,
Cerberus, CIC talk on co-operation
Cerberus Capital Management said it has had talks with China’s sovereign wealth fund about possible co-operation. John Snow, chairman of the US buy-out group and former US Treasury secretary, said there
Friends’ Montague defends bid rejection
Sir Adrian Montague, chairman of Friends Provident, on Tuesday defended the life assurer’s handling of a £3.5bn proposed offer from JC Flowers, which the US buy-out group withdrew two weeks ago blaming Friends’ refusal to hold talks.
JC Blumen
At last, Christopher Flowers has found a European financial house that wants to play private equity — Germany’s Hypo Real Estate. News leaked out on Wednesday, seemingly via Reuters, that JC Flowers was set to take a 25 per cent stake in Hypo,