Financial Services 1996 - Company News Summary

Lloyd Thompson and JIB Group have announced a £300m merger, to create an insurance broking group able to better compete in both the London and Asian markets.
17-Dec-1996

Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette, the US investment bank, is planning to set up a new headquarters in London, and expects to double the current 150 staff already employed in the city.
11-Nov-1996

NatWest Securities Japan is to acquire Citicorp International Securities' Japanese trading operations, for undisclosed terms.
26-Oct-1996

The Private Bank & Trust Company of London is acquiring Reads Trust Company, the Jersey-based trust business, for undisclosed terms.
22-Oct-1996

Inchcape is selling its Bain Hogg insurance broking business to Aon Corp of the US for £160m, having dropped plans to demerge it.
16-Oct-1996

NatWest Markets has acquired Hambro Magan, the merchant banking operation, for undisclosed terms.
11-Oct-1996

Cox Insurance, the Lloyd's insurance company, is to acquire the Christopherson Heath agency for up to £34m.
04-Oct-1996

Legal & General is setting up a direct telephone sales centre in Cardiff, which will focus on health and term insurance and employ 100 staff.
13-Sep-1996

Swiss Reinsurance has acquired Mercantile & General, the reinsurance division of Prudential, for £1.75bn, making it the largest life reinsurer in the world.
28-Aug-1996

HSBC Gibbs Holdings has sold its Premium Credit operation to a management buy-out called Vendcrown, for £40m plus equity.
24-Aug-1996

HSBC's Marine Midland subsidiary in New York is acquiring First Federal Savings & Loan for £397m.
23-Aug-1996

Card Clear, the credit card fraud prevention company, is acquiring its rival Cardcast for £15.4m so that they can focus on developing the market together.
23-Aug-1996

Rathbone Brothers is acquiring Neilson Cobbold, the Liverpool-based stockbroker, for up to £15.9m.
14-Aug-1996

United Friendly and Refuge Group have announced a £1.46bn merger, creating a major home services insurer with combined assets of £6.5bn.
09-Aug-1996

First National Building Society of Ireland has bought The Mortgage Corporation, the UK mortgage lending business, from Salomon Brothers for £53m.
08-Aug-1996

NM Rothschild & Sons has bought Causeway Invoice Discounting for about £5m, in order to improve its banking services.
01-Aug-1996

The Bank of England is to spend £8m a year on strengthening its banking supervision following the collapse of Barings bank, and will recruit 100 extra people.
25-Jul-1996

Goldman Sachs of the US is to acquire CINMan, the UK coal industry pension fund manager, in a deal thought to be worth up to £50m.
22-Jul-1996

The Prudential has sold Leven, its Dutch life assurance operation, to Achmea Group for undisclosed terms.
11-Jul-1996

Guardian Royal Exchange has bought Legal & General's commercial general insurance business for £48m, and hopes to achieve cost savings by merging the business with existing operations.
10-Jul-1996

National Westminster Bank is to acquire Greenwich Captital Markets, the US broker based in Connecticut, from Long-Term Credit Bank of Japan for $600m.
11-Jun-1996

Lloyds TSB is to sell Hill Samuel Bank's corporate finance department to Close Brothers for undisclosed terms, with the remainder of the subsidiary being integrated into Lloyds TSB.
01-Jun-1996

Euclidian, the Lloyd's investment company, is to buy Indemnity Insurance Services for an initial £1.8m.
29-May-1996

Westdeutsche Landesbank, the German bank, is to expand its UK investment banking subsidiary, West Merchant Bank, which now has about 750 people.
15-May-1996

Sun Alliance and Royal Insurance are planning a £6bn merger to form Royal & Sun Alliance, a deal which could result in 5,000 job losses.
04-May-1996

Abbey National is acquiring Wagon Finance, the used car financing business, from United News & Media for £121m.
04-May-1996

Cornhill Insurance has acquired Pet Plan, the animal health insurer, for £32.5m.
02-May-1996

General Accident is buying two German companies for £61m from UAP of France - UAP Allgemeine, a general insurer, and UAP International Leben, a life insurer.
01-May-1996

Guardian Royal Exchange is buying the RAC's insurance broking business for £68m, and the business will become part of Guardian Direct but will continue to use the RAC name.
01-May-1996

The Co-operative Bank is pulling out of fund management with the sale of CIM to Colonial Group of Australia for undisclosed terms.
26-Apr-1996

Halifax Building Society is buying 33 estate agency offices from the Alliance & Leicester for undisclosed terms.
26-Apr-1996

Securitised Endowment Contracts, the financial services company, is buying two independent financial advisors - IFA Network and IFA Network Services.
19-Apr-1996

The Bank of Ireland is buying the Bristol & West building society for £600m, which is expected to keep its own brand with no job losses.
16-Apr-1996

CGA Direct, the insurance broker, has been bought by management from Oriel Group for £20m.
13-Apr-1996

The Newton Group, the independent investment house, has bought the asset management operation of Hogg Robinson Financial Services for an undisclosed sum.
02-Apr-1996

Legal & General is to set up a direct sales centre for its financial services products in Cardiff, creating up to 400 jobs.
29-Mar-1996

Halifax is acquiring Clerical Medical, the life assurer, for £800m, which should enable it to use independent advisers for the sale of pensions, life assurance and investments.
26-Mar-1996

Morgan Grenfell Development Capital has bought CGA, the household and motor insurance telebroker, from Oriel for £12m.
22-Mar-1996

Chesterton International has bought back the Chestertons Residential estate agency business in London from Woolwich Building Society for £8m.
16-Mar-1996

Fishers Intl, the financial services concern, is buying Robert Bishop (Southern), the claims management company, and Miller Knight, the loss adjuster, for a maximum £3m.
07-Mar-1996

Johnson & Higgins, the US insurance broker, has bought Corporate Risk, the Scottish broker, as it attempts to become the leader in large accounts for UK plcs.
04-Mar-1996

Bristol & West, the building society, is withdrawing from estate agencies with the sale of its remaining Hamptons branches to a company created by NatWest Ventures and Cluttons Residential Estate Agency, for £3.8m.
23-Feb-1996

National Westminster Bank is acquiring Gartmore, the fund management concern which was 75% owned by Banque Indosuez, for £472m.
20-Feb-1996

Independent Insurance Group is to buy Safom, the French insurance underwriting agency.
17-Feb-1996

Lowndes Lambert is acquiring Blackwall Group, the holding company for Blackwall Green the insurance broker, for up to £10m.
15-Feb-1996

Liverpool Victoria is acquiring Frizzell, the insurance concern, from Marsh & McLennan of New York for £188m.
08-Feb-1996

Compagnie Financiere SFAC of France is to acquire Trade Indemnity, the credit insurer, for £177m.
02-Feb-1996

Westdeutsche Landesbank Girozentrale of Germany is acquiring Panmure Gordon, the London stockbroker, for about £30m.
30-Jan-1996

Kleinwort Benson has bought most of SBC Warburg's leasing finance and advisory business.
10-Jan-1996

Life Assurance Holding is acquiring Lifetime Assurance's UK activities.
04-Jan-1996

Stroud & Swindon Building Society is acquiring City & Metropolitan, with C&M members likely to get bonuses of up to £2,500.
03-Jan-1996

Albert E Sharp is acquiring Brown Shipley, the stockbroking and personal equity plan operation, from Guinness Peat for £7m.
03-Jan-1996