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“Asia drove global markets on Monday as investors bid up Chinese stocks on hopes of more government support for the country’s economy. Shanghai’s SSE Composite index jumped 1.9%, extending strong gains seen last week. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index climbed nearly 1%. “Commodity producers rode this wave with the FTSE 100 being propped up by miners Glencore and Anglo America. Oil producers, insurers and pharmaceutical companies were also in vogue,” says Russ Mould, Investment Director at AJ Bell.
Superdry
“The board of retailer Superdry has come out fighting against a resolution to appoint co-founder and former chief executive Julian Dunkerton and BooHoo chairman Peter Williams as directors.
“Dunkerton and fellow co-founder James Holder on 1 March requisitioned a shareholder meeting and the former’s desire to return to the fold has been in the public domain since last October.
“The situation looks like a classic power struggle. The incumbent directors don’t want to make any changes despite the business going through a very tough patch. And the old chief executive hasn’t been able to let go of the business despite no longer working there.
“This isn’t a tug of war match where the party with the strongest arm wins the day. It is a battle whose victor will be decided by shareholders as they are part owners of the business. They should vote for the party whose strategy makes best sense to put Superdry back on track.
“We’re currently at the stage where this is a blame-game with both sides calling each other nasty names. The real test will come on 2 April when the vote takes place.”
OneSavings Bank/Charter Court Financial Services
“One of the developments in the banking industry in the decade-and-a-bit since the financial crisis has been the emergence of so-called challenger banks to shake up a sector historically dominated by a few big names.
“Consolidation among these challengers feels like a logical next step and, after previous combinations such as CYBG and Virgin Money, the proposed tie-up between Charter Court and One Savings Bank should come as no surprise.
“This is an all-share deal, no cash is changing hands, and on paper the businesses look to be a pretty good fit. Both are active in the specialist mortgage market and by joining up they will expect to achieve cost savings and potentially lower the cost of funding their business due to their increased scale.
“The experienced Andy Golding, current CEO of OneSavings, is expected to head up the combined entity, having long been tipped as a man to lead a consolidating effort in the space.
“Activist investor Elliott Advisors is the largest shareholder in Charter Court and its position is therefore likely to be crucial when investors in both parties vote on the deal. Though it seems unlikely Charter Court’s board would have recommended the deal without being confident of the hedge fund’s support.”
These articles are for information purposes only and are not a personal recommendation or advice.