By Ian Fraser Sunday Herald November 27th, 2005 BANK CONSOLIDATION: ACQUISITION DRIVE FALTERS Sir Fred Goodwin turned the Royal Bank of Scotland into a global institution with an aggressive takeover policy matched by a strident rationalisation strategy . . . he bought big and cut deep. Now, with British banking out of favour with the [...]
By Ian Fraser Published: Sunday Herald Date: November 27th, 2005 DAVID Murray has attacked the Scottish Executive for failing to understand entrepreneurialism as he unveiled a year of strong financial results at his Murray International Holdings Group. He accused the executive of being “totally lacking in entrepreneurial expertise”. He said: “They might have the best [...]
By Ian Fraser Sunday Herald November 20th, 2005 BANKING: BRAND ON THE RUN IT was launched with much razzmatazz by local hero Jim Spowart at the tail-end of the dotcom boom. Analysts attended a spectacular launch in HBOS’s Old Broad Street London base, where dry ice and Fatboy Slim music blasted out. Intelligent Finance, as [...]
By Ian Fraser Published: Sunday Herald Date: November 20th, 2005 YOU might have thought that running the world’s largest car-maker would be a piece of cake. But for Rick Wagoner, chief executive of General Motors since 2000, it has been more like a bed of nails. The manufacturer, whose brands include Chevrolet, Cadillac, Corvette, GMC, [...]
By Ian Fraser Sunday Herald November 6th, 2005 FUND management group Artemis has posted a 143% increase in its annual profits to £21.7 million In a separate development, Cornelian Asset Managers, another Edinburgh-based fund manager and a spin-out from Noble Group, said it was on track for growth following the appointment of David Ritchie, the [...]