World Business Briefing: Britain: Vacation Service in Merger With Auto Group
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The Saga Group, a British provider of insurance and vacations to the consumers 50 and older, agreed to merge with the Automobile Association in a transaction that values the two closely held companies at Â£6.2 billion ($12.4 billion). The deal would enable Saga to offer policies and cruises to the Automobile Associationâs older customers and the association to sell roadside assistance to Sagaâs 2.5 million clients, the companies said. About 15 million British motorists rely on the association when their cars break down. Sagaâs chief executive, Andrew Goodsell, will head the company, and the automobile associationâs chief executive, Tim Parker, will quit.
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Thomas Cook, the second-biggest European travel group, is to merge with British rival MyTravel, the British group has said.
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(InfoWorld) - U.K. telecommunications carrier BT Group plans to extend its enterprise services offering in the U.S. with the acquisition of International Network Services. The Santa Clara, California, company's services include information risk management and infrastructure transformation, and consulting on business productivity and on enterprise architecture and governance. The acquisition will add 900 staff to the 7,000 already working in BT's global professional services units. INS will become a wholly owned subsidiary of BT, part of its Global Services division, as a result of the acquisition. Its CEO, David Butze, will report jointly to Chuck Pol, president of BT Americas, and to Gary Bullard, president of BT Global Business and Services. BT will pay just over Â£100 million ($196 million) for the company, and expects the deal to close in a few weeks, a spokesman said. INS' last audited accounts, in September 2005, reported gross assets of $49.7 million. In October,Â BT bought another California company, U.S. consultancy Counterpane Internet SecurityÂ for a price it said was in the "tens of millions of dollars." Counterpane, with a staff of 75, monitors and protects the networks of around 550 companies.
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Travelocity takes off as its parent gets bought out.
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British bus and train operator FirstGroup PLC said Friday it agreed to buy U.S.-based bus company Laidlaw International Inc. in a 1.9 billion pound ($2.7 billion) deal.
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EU antitrust regulators gave the green light Monday to a merger of Britain&#39;s Automobile Association with travel and insurance firm Saga after determining that the deal would not stifle competition.
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The USA&#39;s largest online travel agency, Expedia.com, will be spun off into its own company, a move by its corporate parent to promote growth.
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Easy Group on Monday confirmed that it has signed a deal with T-Mobile to offer mobile services in the UK as it targets a formal launch of EasyMobile in March next year.
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Royal Dutch/Shell will merge its Dutch and British holding companies, the oil giant said on Thursday, as it seeks to address the failings that led to a shock downgrade in proven oil reserves in January.
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Luxury car company Aston Martin is expected to be sold to a British-led consortium on Monday.
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Ford Motor Co.  is selling British luxury car maker Aston Martin to a group fronted by former Benetton and BAR motor racing boss David Richards in a deal worth 479 million pounds ($925 million).
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Cazenove&#39;s investment banking unit, which advises nearly half of Britain&#39;s leading companies, is to be merged with the rival operation run by JP Morgan, ending 181 years of independence.
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Gloucestershire based-travel company, Travelscope Holidays, is placed into administration.
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CHARLOTTE, NC - Bank of America said Thursday it will cut about 4,500 jobs beginning this month as a result of its merger with FleetBoston Financial Corp.
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Oil major Royal Dutch/Shell Group said it was merging its Dutch and British holding companies as it seeks to address failings that led to a shock downgrade in proven oil reserves.
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Broadcasters GWR Group PLC and Capital Radio PLC announced plans to merge Wednesday, creating an entity that will control more than a third of Britain&#39;s commercial radio market.
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Capital and GWR today announced their Â£711m merger, creating the country&#39;s biggest radio group in a deal that changes the shape of the British radio industry.