Private equity (PE) backed companies in the Midlands say that their PE backers are more willing to finance their strategic growth plans than more traditional lenders, according to PwC. According to PwC’s survey of nearly 100 PE-backed companies in the UK, 74% of private equity-backed companies say that their PE...
In a quarter that has seen more major high street retailers enter administration, insolvencies in the Midlands have fallen significantly compared to previous recent quarters. In total there were 326 insolvencies in the first three months of 2013 in the West Midlands, down from 405 in Q4 2012 and 489...
A surge in private equity-backed company initial public offerings during March 2013 may be the first signs of a recovery in the European IPO market. PwC’s IPO Watch Europe Q1 2013 report found that activity for the quarter rose by almost 40% from €2.3bn to €3.2bn, compared to Q1 2012....
A recent announcement by the London Stock Exchange (LSE) that it plans to introduce a new High Growth Segment for companies seeking equity investment to fund their growth plans could spark a revival in the region’s IPO market, says PwC. The High Growth Segment is intended to incentivise fast-growing corporates...
The Midlands is drawing in more real estate investment as optimism returns and London’s marketplace shows signs of overheating, according to real estate experts at PwC. A new report, entitled Emerging Trends in Real Estate Europe 2013, published jointly by the Urban Land Institute (ULI) and PwC, reveals that real...
Welcome to our February 2013 edition of the Midlands Deal Team Times. Our newsletter highlights current issues which we hope you find of relevance to you and your business. We profile some of our locally-based merger and acquisition specialists and cover some of the recent transactions completed in the Midlands...
Update: PwC announces completion of the deal to save iconic London Taxi cab manufacturer PwC announces the completion of a deal to sell the principal assets and trade of Coventry based London Taxi Company, manufacturer of the iconic London Black Cab. The acquisition is made by Geely UK Limited a...
The administrators of The Jessop Group Limited, have announced the sale of the brand and certain assets. Rob Hunt, joint administrator and PwC partner, said: "We can confirm that we have sold the brand and certain other assets to a number of buyers including entrepreneur Peter Jones CBE." Edward Williams,...
The value of IPOs in Europe increased by more than seven-fold year on year in the fourth quarter of 2012, making it the strongest performance since Q3 2011, which saw 121 IPOs raise €9.3bn. 70 IPOs raised €7.5bn in Q4 2012 compared with 78 IPOs raising €0.9bn in Q4 2011,...
Edward Williams, Rob Hunt and Matthew Hammond of PwC were appointed joint administrators of The Jessop Group Limited (Jessops or the Company) on 9 January 2013. Rob Hunt, joint administrator and partner PwC said: "Since my appointment, we have reviewed the position of the business and held extensive discussions with...
Six shops were closed post-Christmas, prior to the appointment of the administrators. These are Torquay (4), Tamworth (4), Weston super Mare (5), Wolverhampton (8), Hereford (6)and Walsall (4). The number of jobs affected by these closures is given in brackets after each one. No decisions have yet been taken regarding...
See more on where pockets of opportunity for economic growth are bubbling up in 2013.
Edward Williams, Rob Hunt and Matthew Hammond of PwC were appointed joint administrators of The Jessop Group Limited on 9 January 2013. Jessops is a major high-street retailer of photographic equipment and growing online business, based in Leicester. Turnover in the year to 31 December 2012 was £236m and Jessops...
So what is the customer funding gap and why is it important? The customer funding gap measures the aggregate difference between customer loans and customer deposits across the UK banking system. This gap peaked at close to £900bn in 2008 at the height of the financial crisis. It revealed one...
The administrators of Manganese Bronze Holdings are pleased to announce that all of the 401 vehicles recovered as part of the taxi recall have been fixed and are back on the road. The joint administrators are now commencing the second phase of the fix programme. Over 600 largely new and...
The first two stages of auto-enrolment are live and we are experiencing strong appetite amongst clients to hear about the incidence of opt out. Many of the first stagers are using the optional postponement period so significant volume data won't be coming through until January 2013 onwards. However, those that...
Welcome to our November 2012 edition of the Midlands Deal Team Times. Our newsletter highlights current issues which we hope you find of relevance to you and your business. We profile some of our locally-based merger and acquisition specialists and cover some of the recent transactions completed in the Midlands...
While the UK’s first automatic pension enrolment process is undoubtedly a great way to ensure millions of people begin planning for their retirement early on in their careers, for some employers, embedding the operation into their business will be nothing short of a major operational challenge. Although we have seen...
Auto-enrolment creates specific challenges for ‘exception’ populations such as contractors, agency workers and particularly expatriates. For those used to dealing with expatriates from a tax perspective, it is often possible to assess their position retrospectively based upon the length of time spent in or outside the UK. The auto-enrolment (AE)...
GDP growth in the West Midlands economy is expected to pick up and gain momentum in 2013, according to PwC’s latest economic report, as businesses begin to react to a gradual upturn in consumer demand. Despite the current ‘cloudy’ outlook for the UK economy, the firm’s economists are anticipating brighter...
