Management & Leadership

Inditex injects doubt into smooth-running machine

30 Nov 2021

Spain’s $100 bln fast fashion group replaced Executive Chairman Pablo Isla with founder Amancio Ortega’s daughter, Marta. Its valuation reflects investor faith in Isla’s digital strategy, which helped Inditex weather Covid-19. The abrupt pivot to untried leaders will test that.

China property bond rejig is destined to fail

30 Nov 2021

Developer Kaisa wants holders of $400 mln in notes to extend for 18 months. They’d get no real sweetener and would be pushed behind $3.6 bln of other maturing debt. Boss Kwok Ying-shing went through a $2 bln restructuring in 2015. Now he seems on course for a $12 bln repeat.

Jack Dorsey leaves one company, helps out two

29 Nov 2021

Twitter is better off without its co-founder, who was also busy being CEO of fintech firm Square. The $38 bln social network hasn’t set a clear strategic direction, unlike rival Facebook. Square, meanwhile, could use the extra attention as it faces a growing crowd of rivals.

Review: House of Gucci’s broken family capitalism

26 Nov 2021

A sprawling dynasty can lead to corporate disaster. Ridley Scott’s star-studded movie is a kaleidoscopic portrait of the infighting that saw the Gucci family lose control of their namesake brand. Stepping aside at the right time can make all the difference.

Capital Calls: Software AG logs onto buyout boom

26 Nov 2021

Concise views on global finance: A subdued valuation and eager bidders increase the 3 billion euro German company’s chances of a possible sale.

Succession mess turns Orange into governance lemon

25 Nov 2021

The $30 bln French phone firm is seeking a new chairman and CEO after incumbent Stéphane Richard received a criminal conviction. A previous trial in 2019 should have prodded the board to line up a replacement. Splitting the top jobs is a first step to smoother future transitions.

Cox: Telecom Italia and the curse of the euro era

25 Nov 2021

The 1999 buyout of Italy’s phone monopoly baptised Europe’s new single currency. The years since have been terrible for the company and its many trophy-seeking owners, who have lost some $23 bln. Here’s why the latest offer from private equity firm KKR offers hope for redemption.

Capital Calls: Remy Cointreau, African petrol

25 Nov 2021

Concise views on global finance: With profits soaring, the cognac maker will face mounting pressure for M&A; commodity trader Vitol buys out minority shareholders in London-listed fuel distributor Vivo.

Jamie Dimon sets his bank up to be China punchline

24 Nov 2021

JPMorgan’s boss was looking for chuckles when he said he’d wager that his employer would outlast the country’s Communist Party. Beijing is unlikely to appreciate the humour. As UBS and others can attest, the business blowback from perceived slights is often no laughing matter.

UBS foreign chair ticks more boxes than Deutsche’s

21 Nov 2021

The Swiss lender picked Irishman Colm Kelleher to lead its board, while the German bank nominated Dutchman Alex Wynaendts. The former Morgan Stanley banker might bring some of the U.S. firm’s valuation magic to UBS. But M&A-hungry Deutsche could use more political heft in Berlin.

Disney’s empty chair is a succession stumble

19 Nov 2021

There’s still no official replacement for Bob Iger, who’s expected to exit at the end of the year. Other companies, from Mastercard to AT&T, named a new chairperson faster and more transparently. With a new CEO in charge, a switched-on board is all the more important.

Razer’s $4.5 bln buyout plan has a serrated edge

19 Nov 2021

The purveyor of pricey keyboards may swap a Hong Kong listing for one in New York as part of a management-led deal. A video-gaming fanbase gives it meme-stock potential while its Southeast Asian fintech unit might look hotter stateside. But any valuation gains may be subtle.

Prada’s new look merits fashion league promotion

18 Nov 2021

After years of drift, the $18 bln Italian brand has got a grip on its retail chain, axed discounts and rejuvenated its image. That should help it hit a 4.5 bln euro sales target and double its margins. For investors, the catch-up with snazzier rivals is something worth having.

Viewsroom: European bank M&A, De-Dutching Shell

18 Nov 2021

Big lenders in the euro zone are doing deals, but not the kind investment bankers dream about. BNP Paribas is in U.S. retreat, BBVA bulks up in Turkey and KBC goes Bulgarian. Liam Proud explains. George Hay explains why the Anglo-Dutch oil major is dropping the Dutch bit.

Breakdown: COP’s bare minimum is still a ratchet

15 Nov 2021

Glasgow’s UN global climate shindig needed to outline a clear path to halve emissions by 2030 and secure way more cash for developing states. It managed neither. Still, the final agreement, and a joint U.S.-China pact, make it harder for companies to delay on climate change.

Toshiba split edges it slowly down the right path

12 Nov 2021

The $19 bln conglomerate plans to break into three, days after fellow former titan GE did the same. For Japan Inc, it’s revolutionary. More focused units should attract better managers and valuations. But the two-year timetable seems designed to discourage more vocal investors.

U.S.-China climate pledge adds psychological lift

11 Nov 2021

The world’s two biggest polluters surprised COP26 with a joint statement, albeit one with few new greenhouse-gas cuts. At least it tries to separate global warming from other diplomatic problems, and it should help others set their sights higher. Something is better than nothing.

Capital Calls: Tesla, Daimler

11 Nov 2021

Concise views on global finance: The electric-car maker’s directors have, like Elon Musk, cashed in; the German company is racing against Agnelli-controlled CNH Industrial to spin off a trucks division.

The Exchange: Bank of America boss Brian Moynihan

9 Nov 2021

With a $2.8 trln balance sheet, BofA is one of the largest banks in the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero. Moynihan tells Rob Cox what this means operationally, how the bank is helping “hard to abate” firms to transition, and what it’s like to be back at conferences.

Euronext and Nasdaq can scratch backs in Europe

8 Nov 2021

After buying Borsa Italiana, the $12 billion pan-EU exchange needs another deal. Nasdaq’s Nordic business, worth say $3 bln, is an ideal target. Euronext boss Stéphane Boujnah will need to convince the U.S. group’s CEO Adena Friedman that a sale could accelerate her data pivot.