Co-operative Group places second bid for Lloyds retail branches
11/10/2011 08:56:19
Nov 10, 2011 (M&A Navigator via COMTEX News Network) -- 10 November 2011 - British cooperative society The Co-operative Group confirmed in a statement today it had placed a second-round offer to buy the retail branches on sale by Lloyds Banking Group (LON:LLOY). Co-operative submitted its bid late Wednesday, it said, without giving financial details. British banking venture NBNK (LON:NBNK) sent in an offer of GBP1.5bn (USD2.4bn/EUR1.8bn) for the Lloyds branches over a month ago, the Wall Street Journal reported. Tim Tookey, Lloyds' interim chief, said on Tuesday that a "number of bidders" were interested in the branches, although the bank was still considering floating the business and will give further details on the process by the end of 2011, the paper said. Lloyds is selling 632 branches under an agreement with European Union (EU) regulators in exchange for their approval of its bailout. It hired JP Morgan Chase & Co (NYSE:JPM) and Citigroup (NYSE:C) to manage the sale. The Wall Street Journal cited reports suggesting that Co-op's offer could place it in the lead position in the bidding race. Private investment firm Sun Capital is also in talks with Lloyds over a potential offer, the paper said. Country: , UK Sector: Banking/Financial Services Target: Lloyds Banking Group's branches Buyer: NBNK Investments PLC, Co-operative Group Ltd Vendor: Lloyds Banking Group Plc Type: Corporate acquisition Status: Bidding Comment: NBNK's bid is USD2.4bn.

well i am back off hols .and i hope you remember i posted many times that the ceo was a loser and would be gone in a couple of years the man is a muppet.you now no i was correct.

Hope you had a good break Tanker.




What confidence this shows, a whole 428 shares (125) wow



Director Deals - Lloyds Banking Group PLC (LLOY)
BFN
Tim Tookey, Financial Director, bought 428 shares in the company on the 9th November 2011 at a price of 29.25p. The Director now holds 91,571 shares representing 0.00% of the shares in issue.

Director Deals - Lloyds Banking Group PLC (LLOY)
G. Truett Tate, Executive Director, bought 428 shares in the company on the 9th November 2011 at a price of 29.25p. The Director now holds 691,665 shares representing 0.00% of the shares in issue. NOTE: Also allocated 102 matching shares Story provided by StockMarketWire.com Director deals...

dream - these are "Sharesave" monthly purchases. The modest investment is limited because of tax rules.

Thought it strange smarty, thanks.

dream i had i nice hol apart from the disgraceful english women and young girls .
sluts i was ashamed to be seen by them .feral rats about sums them up.

Good for you Tanker. What an embarrassment SOME youngsters are.

dream a lot of them over 40 and married .and most will take home something they never went with.

a lot of them from london .dropping there knickers in the bars and asking for takers .

Brushing the old tarts aside, sounds like you had a good break.

dream temp at night 20 day aound 28. yes walked miles but will never go to teneriffe again next is florida 5th april then portugal in june then back to spain for aug then lanarote for nov . great life is it not

I go to Adeje in Tenerife, the quiet end. (not the disco youngsters) very nice.

Grumpy miserable gits......sums you both up......Tanker you only went there to see the wildlife..........or you would have gone to Madeira with the other old frumps. ;)

Perhaps Madeira in 30yrs time lol. Whats Madeira like any way bb. Did you take the walking stick? You have not been on much bb, been busy with work?

never been......to young at heart........give me the wildlife in tenerife, maybe on my way for christmas. :))))))))

Next March me bb, not the no knickers end of Tenerife.lol You wont see any snow there .lol

if it's 28 degree's at xmas that'll do for me...... yyyyyyyyyyyyeeeeeeeeeehhhhhhhhhaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

Good for you, I can guess you have worked hard over the summer. More I know.

Lloyds shareholders demand update on lack of a leader

..James Quinn, 8:16, Sunday 13 November 2011

Investors are demanding an update on the growing leadership vacuum at Lloyds Banking Group as a result of the continued absence of chief executive, Antonio Horta-Osorio.

Major institutional shareholders spoken to by The Sunday Telegraph are concerned at the lack of information from the bank since Mr Horta-Osorio left on medical advice two weeks ago.

In particular, a number of investors said that they had not been personally contacted by Glen Moreno, the senior independent director, or by Sir Win Bischoff, the chairman, about the issue.

The sentiment among investors is that even if Mr Horta-Osorio returns to full health, it would be difficult for him to return because of the signal his absence the result of "extreme fatigue" has given to investors.

"It is clear the job was too big for him," said one top 15 shareholder.

Another investor questioned why the bank was not speeding up its internal contingency plan.

That is likely to see as The Sunday Telegraph reported last week one of the board, most likely Mr Moreno or fellow non-executive David Roberts, take on the role for an interim period while a full-time external replacement can be found and vetted by the relevant regulatory authorities.

UK Financial Investments, which manages the Government's 41pc stake in Lloyds, is thought to be supportive of Sir Win's approach so far.

One source, however, admitted the board is hoping for the best, but planning for the worst.

A Lloyds spokesman said Mr Horta-Osorio is expected to return by the end of the year.

Rainmaker: a succession conundrum at Lloyds

James Quinn, 8:16, Sunday 13 November 2011

Succession in major companies can be very hard to get right at the best of times.

Changing and replacing executive management is fraught with problems not only finding executives with the right skills, but finding those who will best work together is not an easy task.

It is hard enough during normal conditions, when succession planning can take place over a period of six months, and executives can be vetted and recruited accordingly with experienced headhunters drafted in to hold the hand of the respective appointments' committee.

But at a company which is on the verge of losing its finance director, and whose chief executive is on an extended leave of absence, it is even trickier.

I am, of course, referring to Lloyds Banking Group (LSE: LLOY.L - news) and the very real corporate governance challenges facing the part state-owned bank.

With finance director Tim Tookey in the departure lounge and few outside Lloyds' 25 Gresham Street head office believing that chief executive Antonio Horta-Osorio will return to take up his post the bank's board faces some tough challenges.

As we report in today's paper, shareholders are growing increasingly concerned about the situation playing out at Lloyds.

Publicly, the company has said Horta-Osorio will return by the end of the year, and is sticking to that mantra. But it is a mantra that is not likely to satisfy investors for very much longer.

Clearly, the investor that matters is UK Financial Investments, which owns a 41pc stake on behalf of the UK taxpayer.

But other major shareholders in the company's top fifteen are unhappy with the way the situation has been handled, and the way it has been communicated.

Those who have spoken to this newspaper are unhappy that Tookey has been made interim chief executive given that he has already resigned and has firmly re-stated his desire to take up his new role at Friends Life.

They are unhappy with the questions that Horta-Osorio's "temporary absence" raises. They are also unhappy that the board was not more decisive when it made its initial announcement surrounding Horta-Osorio's absence, and didn't bite the bullet and begin a full-on search for a replacement there and then.

Of course, the board could argue that it is difficult to begin such a search for a new chief executive when it already has one.

But, as this newspaper first reported last weekend, the board does have a contingency plan which, should it become clear the Portuguese banker will not return, involves parachuting a senior non-executive director into the chief executive's hot-seat until a full-time chief executive can be found and vetted by the relevant authorities.

This is obviously a very delicate situation, with no right answers. Lloyds board is clearly in a very tricky position, and few would want to be sitting around that table.

But at a time like this, surely it would be sensible to keep talking to shareholders, if only to reassure them that contingency plans exist? By shutting them out, the board is simply making matters worse for itself and for Horta-Osorio, should he ever return.

james.quinn@telegraph.co.uk

Twitter:@jamesrquinn