Sunday newspaper round-up: Xstrata/Anglo American, Brixton, Goldman Sachs

21st Jun 2009 09:27

Mining giant Xstrata has approached arch-rival Anglo American about a £41bn merger that would create one of the world's biggest natural-resources companies. Mick Davis, chief executive of Xstrata, is understood to have written to the board of Anglo last week to propose discussions about a deal after pressure from Black Rock and Capital Group, two of his biggest shareholders, the Sunday Times reports. Bondholders in Brixton will this week call for the heads of the property group's top executives and an independent valuation of its real estate portfolio in a move to derail the company's takeover talks with Segro, its arch-rival. The property group will face a backlash from bondholders who fear the company's takeover plans could leave them facing a loss on their investments, reports the Sunday Telegraph.Alistair Darling's blueprint for financial regulation in Britain has at its heart a beefed-up tripartite system, rather than a wholesale transfer of powers to the Bank of England. In what some will see as a snub for Mervyn King, the Bank of England governor, the chancellor's blueprint will draw heavily on the recommendations of Lord Turner, chairman of the Financial Services Authority (FSA), which set out key roles for the FSA and Treasury, as well as the Bank, the Sunday Times reports.Citigroup, the investment bank, has agreed to underwrite a £500m fundraising by ITV if it appoints Tony Ball as its new chief executive. The pledge to back a substantial capital-raising if ITV hires Mr Ball will intensify the pressure on the company to open negotiations with the former boss of BSkyB about the vacant post, writes the Sunday Telegraph.Goldman Sachs' staff can look forward to the biggest bonus payouts in the firm's 140-year history after a spectacular first half of the year, sparking concern that the big investment banks that survived the credit crunch will derail financial regulation reforms. A lack of competition and a surge in revenues from trading foreign currency, bonds and fixed-income products has sent profits at Goldman Sachs soaring, according to insiders at the firm, the Observer reports.Sir Richard Branson has rubbed salt in British Airways' wounds by declaring BA practically worthless, and urging the government to resist any attempts to bail it out. Branson's comments will incense BA management, which this week will hold vital talks with cabin crew and ground staff over pay cuts, lay-offs and changes to working conditions aimed at saving £100m a year. "It's not worth much anymore because of the liabilities" he said, reports the Sunday Times.Depressed commercial property prices have prompted a wave of interest in the market with up to 16 firms currently working on or readying plans to launch real estate funds. Blackstone, the New York-listed financial services firm, heads the list with plans to raise around $2bn (£1.2bn) in Europe for a new Special Situations real estate fund. The fund will look to buy up cheap real estate debt rather than equity, the Sunday Independent reports.A group of London's largest hedge funds, which between them manage £120bn of assets, have joined forces to fight a proposed European directive on financial regulation. This is the first time the secretive investment community has taken such a public stand. They say that if the directive is introduced it will have a devastating impact, the Sunday Times reports. British Gas owner Centrica is prepared to go hostile in its 850p-a-share bid for oil and gas group Venture Production as its prey holds out for 950p.The Takeover Panel last week gave Centrica until 13 July to make a full bid for Venture, having bought nearly a quarter of the company at 725p a share in March. This valued Venture at £1.1bn, while its management is looking for around £1.45bn, the Sunday Independent reports.Gordon Brown has ordered top ministers at the Treasury and Department of Business to draw up plans to cope with rising oil prices and a lending drought for UK companies, amid fears that the nation's economic recovery risks being derailed. Brown is seeking an international agreement to tackle the rising cost of crude, which rose to almost $72 a barrel on Friday, the Observer reports.