A cheeky website about deals, dealmakers and anything else I find interesting. Edited by Ben Harrington. If you have a tip, want to discuss a story or have a subscription enquiry please feel free to email Betaville at [email protected]. Betaville can also be reached at Whats App, Signal or Telegram. Betaville's Twitter handle is @bharringtonw11 and you can message me via Twitter with stories.
Mark "The Kleinmanator" Kleinman of Sky News has popped up this morning with a decent tale about THG, the London-listed online retailer.
Now, loyal subscribers to Betaville Intelligence content will know that THG has come back onto little old Betaville's radar recently though not for the reasons the Kleinmanator is suggesting...
The Covestro takeover situation rumbles on and the latest twist comes courtesy of German rag (and website) Frankfurter Allgemeine.
According to the newspaper, German chemicals company Covestro has appointed bankers from Goldman Sachs to deal with the inbound takeover interest from the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc)...
Hat tip to the the Genteel Hustler for making it onto the front page of the The Sunday Times business section in his first week on the title with a scoopette about Peter Chernin weighing a £1 billion takeover bid for British TV production house All3Media...
There is some big news breaking in the world of private equity - Guy Hands, one of Britain's best known and most controversial private equity dealmakers, is set to step down as chairman of Terra Firma.
Well, that's according to a Tweet from Mark "The Kleinmanator" Kleinman of Sky News. Below is Kleiny's Tweet:..
You can rely on Cannacord Genuity's Quest to be bullish about the prospect of more takeover deals this year.
Well, at the very least scribblers at Quest are attempting to put an optimistic spin on this year's lacklustre dealmaking environment in Britain...
Bitcoin mining firm Argo Blockchain has today confirmed it is carrying out a placing at 10p a share to raise over £5 million. Below is a link to the announcement:
https://www.londonstockexchange.com/news-article/ARB/result-of-placing/16046458
Of course, this "news" won't come as much of a surprise to loyal readers of this website.....
So, the big bear has finally come out of the woods.
Activist short seller Viceroy Research, led by Fraser Perring, has just released a research report on Swedish firm Hexagon AB cotaining some rather fruity allegations.
Now, for legal reasons those allegations can't be repeated on this website but if you are interested in what Viceroy has to say about Hexagon AB little old Betaville suggests clicking on the link below:..
I see arch rivals at Bloomberg have once again scooped little old Betaville on the Covestro takeover tale.
This website was chasing a line all last week about the Abu Dhabi National Oil (Adnoc) company looking to increase its offer for Covestro, the German chemicals company...
There is talk in the market that Argo Blockchain, the Bitcoin mining group listed in London, is working an equity fundraising.
People following the situation have heard rumours Argo Blockchain, which also has a US listing, could be looking to tap up shareholders for fresh cash, possibly via a placing.
Some people had heard brokers at Tennyson Securities were working on the deal for Argo Blockchain and were looking to raise the funds at around 10p a share. ..
Little old Betaville's assumption was correct.
In case you missed it earlier today below is a link the confirmation of the Kleinmanator's scoop and the terms of Searchlight's £469.8 million takeover of Gresham House:..
That weren't too many deal stories in the British Sunday newspapers this weekend but Mark "The Kleinmanator" Kleinman of Sky News came up with a decent scoopette this afternoon...
It would appear little old Betaville was barking up the right tree with his latest UNCOOKED Alert about Digital 9 Infrastructure, the London-listed investment trust.
Sixth Street has just said it has no intention of making an offer and is now bound by the restrictions of rule 2.8 of the Takeover Code etc etc etc. Below is a the link to the press release:..
Hacks at The Wall Street Journal landed a decent scoop overnight about Switzerland's Roche talks to buy a stomach drug from Roivant Sciences, the US-listed biotechnology group.
According to the WSJ report, Roche is looking to pay around $7 billion for drug, so no wonder Roivant's shares are up amost 16pc in the pre-market as the market capitlisation of the company is just under $9 billion...
To the H/Advisors party at Savoy Place in central London...
What is it about stockmarket bears and Swedish companies?
Over the last couple of years some of the stockmarket's most ferocious bears, including Fraser Perring's Viceroy, have targeted ailing Swedish firms, such as Swedish property company Samhällsbyggnadsbolaget (also known as SBB) and more recently Hexatronic Group, a telecoms equipment company...
There is still plenty of talk circulating the London market at the moment that dealmaking activity has dropped off a cliff.
Yet, every morning this week there has been a fresh deal announced on the regulatory news service - albeit at the smaller end of the market.
STM Group, for example, this morning said the pensions administrator is in talks to recommend an offer of 70p a share from Edi Truell's Pension SuperFund Capital. Below is a link to that announcement:..
Ping! An email arrives from "strategic communications advisory group" (also known as a public relations firm) H/Advisors.
One of the authors is Neil Bennett, now "global co-chief executive of H/Advisors". Bennett also managed to get a slot on Ian King's Sky News show to talk about his firm's findings from its "research" into leaks...
[Disclaimer - the information on Betaville does not consitute any form of investment recommendation and is not intended to be relied upon by readers in making, or refraining from, any investment decisions].