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’The curious case of the JJB cash call [updated and explained]
If Wednesday’s cash call from Commerzbank is mind-numbingly complex, then the latest fund raise from JJB Sports, the struggling sports retailer, is downright odd.
First, let’s consider the fees.
JJB is raising £65m of which £5m will be paid out in fees,
SEC accuses ex-Lazard, TPG employees of insider trading
Insider trading – it’s the new black.
The SEC on Wednesday accused a former vice president and investment banker at Lazard Freres and a former associate at private equity firm TPG Capital of “serial insider trading”.
Lazard names Kenneth Jacobs
Lazard on Tuesday said it has appointed veteran banker Kenneth Jacobs as its new chairman and successor to Bruce Wasserstein, whose unexpected death last month left a void atop the investment bank. Jacobs,
Lazard future remains uncertain
Lazard on Wednesday faced questions about its future after the recent death of its CEO Bruce Wasserstein, even as the investment bank reported better-than-expected Q3 results. Lazard’s Q3 revenues climbed to $412m from $405m a year ago while its net Q3 income of $37m marked a sharp turnround from its $76m year-earlier loss.
Lazard’s posthumous $87m expense
The eagle-eyed types at the WSJ’s Deal Journal blog have spotted something that should give Lazard investors pause for thought – the tremendous expenses related to paying stock awards to the late, great Bruce Wasserstein.
Golub named after Wasserstein death
Steven Golub, vice chairman of Lazard, was named interim CEO of the firm following the death of Bruce Wasserstein, the pre-eminent Wall Street dealmaker who took the bank public in 2005, reports Bloomberg. Wasserstein died on Wednesday at the age of 61, reports the FT,
Bruce Wasserstein 1947-2009
Related links:
Lazard’s dealmaker in hospital with heart problem – FT
Golub Most Likely Wasserstein Successor, Cohan Says – Bloomberg
Lazard’s Wasserstein hospitalised
Bruce Wassertstein, chairman and chief executive of investment bank Lazard, is in “serious” condition after being hospitalized for an irregular heartbeat, the company said in a statement, reports Bloomberg.
That Danone dud
We’re coming out with our hands up.
FT Alphaville reported earlier that well informed sources (now on probation) had indicated French group Danone had brought in Lazard to work on a possible bid for Mead Johnson of the US.
The ‘end of the beginning’, according to Bruce
Just as we were all thinking we’d go mad if we heard the term “green shoots” one more time, Lazard’s chief executive Bruce Wasserstein has obligingly come up with a Rumsfeldian phrase (or better still,
Lazard posts $43m Q2 profit
Lazard on Wednesday reported Q2 net income of $43.1m, down from $64.6m in earnings for the same period last year, but up from a loss of $29.7m in the first quarter. The results helped boost the investment bank’s shares by almost 13% to $34.50 in New York.
Boutique banks win bigger share of M&A fees
Independent investment firms are taking a greater share of advisory fees than ever as companies turn to old-fashioned skills in an uncertain market, the FT said, citing Dealogic data. Boutique banks, which provide advice on mergers and acquisitions and restructurings,
Lazard man joins US Treasury
Jim Millstein, a banker with investment group Lazard, joined the US Treasury on Monday in a newly created position of senior restructuring officer. In a memo to friends, Millstein said his role would be to assist Tim Geithner,
Lazard cuts workforce
Lazard on Wednesday said it had cut 10% of its staff as a steep drop in fees generated by its advisory and asset management businesses halved its net income. The investment bank, which suffered a 40% drop in annual net income,
Lazard to review Debenham’s £900m debt
Debenhams has appointed Lazard as financial adviser with a brief to revise the indebted UK department store chain’s capital structure. Lazard will consider a potential equity raising, covenant waiver and renegotiating the maturity of the debt beyond the existing 2011 repayment deadline.
Lazard executives to sell shares
Senior executives at Lazard will sell a $317m stake in the investment bank this month through a secondary offering of common stock. The $317m stake makes up one eighth of their holding. Kenneth Jacobs,
Champagne or Budweiser?
Goldman Sachs is to receive $40m for its role in advising Anheuser-Busch on its sale to Inbev, according to an SEC filing:
Pursuant to an engagement letter between Anheuser-Busch and Goldman Sachs, Anheuser-Busch has agreed to pay Goldman Sachs fees of approximately $40 million for its services in connection with the Merger,
Lazard bolstered by dealmaking activity
Lazard said Wednesday that higher expenses reduced its first-half net income, but operating revenue rose 1% after its key merger advisory and asset management businesses posted a strong second quarter.
UBS shake-up foreshadowed in Lazard review
UBS has hired external advisers to help with its strategic review, signalling that the troubled Swiss bank may be considering action more radical than originally expected. UBS, which suffered $37.4bn of mark-downs and credit losses over the last year,
Questions from Luqman; answers from Lazard?
Having yesterday been the (rumoured) object of a potential takeover bid from HSBC, UBS is now, reportedly, employing Lazard to conduct a strategic review of its investment banking business.
From the New York Post:
KKR expands into infrastructure
KKR will on Friday unveil plans to diversify into infrastructure, hiring a top Lazard executive to lead an expected $10bn fundraising, as the US buy-out group reacts to recent credit market turmoil. The shift into infrastructure is a tacit admission by KKR that it is too focused on “mega buy-outs” of large companies,
Credit crunch hits Lazard
Lazard suffered an unexpected hit from the credit crunch in the first quarter as losses on the value of bonds and equities held on its balance sheet dented the independent investment bank’s profits. Lazard,
Ex-IMF head Rato joins Lazard
Lazard, the independent investment bank, has hired Rodrigo Rato, the former head of the International Monetary Fund, to be a senior banker and help strengthen the bank’s political and financial contacts.
Deutsche Bank bruised – but Lazard hits record
Deutsche Bank reported a sharp fall in third-quarter profits before tax due to large write-downs on losses in the credit markets, but the result was ahead of its guidance issued earlier this month. The bank said pre-tax earnings fell 19 per cent to €1.4bn.
And the winner of the 2007 FT/Goldman Sachs Business Book of the Year is…
William Cohan for The Last Tycoons.
A controversial choice in this prestigious award, with what is probably best described as a “vivid” account of the tumultuous evolution of Lazard, the investment bank,
RBS looks to sell Angel Trains
Royal Bank of Scotland is looking to sell its train-leasing company, Angel Trains, for about £4bn – about 10 times the price it paid for the business in 1997. RBS has hired bankers at Lazard to consider options for Angel at a time when many new infrastructure funds are looking to buy stable assets.
… While Lazard suffers profit drop
Lazard suffered a drop in Q2 deal advisory revenues and net profit but reported better-than-expected results on Wednesday, helped by its asset management business. The US investment bank run by Bruce Wasserstein had disappointed investors in the first quarter with flat revenues from its core business of corporate deal advice.
Akzo shareholder stirs rebellion on ICI
Akzo Nobel, the Dutch chemicals company, is facing a potential shareholder rebellion over its proposed £7.8bn offer for UK rival ICI after US asset manager TPG-Axon, a key investor with 3.5 per cent of Akzo,
Kesa considers buy-out offer for But
Kesa Electricals, the Anglo-French retailer, has appointed investment bank Lazard to examine buy-out proposals from private equity firms for But, its French household furnishings chain, according to the FT’s sister paper,