Green renewables plunge 60% in region on emissions jitters

UNCERTAINTY on emissions trading and the drop in value of renewable energy certificates has caused investment in renewables in Australasia to fall by more than anywhere else in the world.

Taxman in dogged pursuit of the minimisers

The letter of the law can be interpreted, exported, twisted and even subverted, write Stuart Washington and Adele Ferguson.

Funding changes a threat for Primary Health

INVESTORS in Primary Health Care are still reeling from a December half where it underperformed in all three of its major divisions. Now, research from Royal Bank of Scotland suggests that its largest business unit €” medical centres €” faces a new threat from likely Medicare funding changes.

Big box office among private equity players

The czars of the Australian private equity industry will come out of hiding en masse today for their annual get-together. This year's will probably mirror last year as they ponder how to change their model sufficiently to secure their future.

The numbers keep adding up for Labor€™s new Richo

Stephen Conroy knows how to deliver rewards to his loyal mates.

Harrah's seeks Crown's Macau casinos stake

THE James Packer-controlled Crown could get an offer for its $US600 million ($A675 million) stake in its Macau joint venture.

Buyer interest in Packer's Macau casinos

THE James Packer-controlled Crown could get an offer for its $US600 million ($675 million) stake in its Macau gambling joint venture, a US-based analyst report says. David Bain, a gambling analyst with the Southern California arm of the broking firm Sterne Agee, said in a note to clients that the world's biggest casino operator, Harrah's Entertainment, was "acutely interested" in buying the 32 per cent stake in Melco Crown Enter-tainment.

ATO chases Myer millions

PRIVATE equity firms have been put on notice that supposedly tax efficient structures for owning and selling assets such as the $2.4 billion float of the department store giant Myer Holdings may in fact attract multimillion-dollar income tax bills.

Privateers pursued over Myer tax bill

THERE would be almost no chance of recovering a $678 million tax bill against the private equity firm TPG if funds from last week's float of Myer moved offshore, a lawyer for the Australian Taxation Office warned in court this week.

Private equity firms providing business capital

Private equity firms may be able to provide your business with the capital it needs to expand.

Report Shows New Face Of Private Equity In Retail Buy-outs

A REPORT has challenged the view that private equity takeovers will continue to wane, arguing that the high cost of credit is pushing private equity firms to restructure their deals rather than miss out altogether.

Hot Field In Running For Primary Prizes

THE battle for the pharmaceutical and consumer divisions of Primary Health Care is shaping as a Melbourne Cup field, with up to 15 parties, including three consortiums, likely to make a bid. The global pharmaceutical giants Wyeth and GlaxoSmithKline are believed to have expressed interest in bidding for the Primary off-cuts, as has the health-care company McKesson. The private equity firms Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, which owns the British pharmacy chain Boots, and Private Equity Partners are also ...

Private Equity Driving Up Pay

GENEROUS private-equity pay schemes for senior executives, in which managers frequently receive up to 15 per cent of a company's shares, would be mimicked by publicly listed companies, according to a new report.

A Rustle In The Grass May Have Awakened Private Equity To Coates' Presence

THE timing of Coates Hire's announcement of a profit downgrade last week couldn't have been more unfortunate, given the stalking of the company by private equity.

Directors Accused Of Failing On Private Equity

DIRECTORS are copping out if they let private equity take over their companies and do things the directors should have done, says the former star witness against fallen mogul John Elliott.

Repco Takes Private Road To Repair

CAR parts wholesaler and retailer Repco has given up the battle to repair its badly mauled finances under the gaze of an unforgiving sharemarket and agreed to a $336 million private equity deal. CCMP Capital Asia will take Repco private in a $1.75-a-share offer just three years after the company was relisted in a $405 million fund-raising by a consortium of three other private equity firms. Gresham Private Equity, GS Private Equity and Macquarie Direct Investment had engineered a management ...

Dangers Lurk In Torrent Of Private Equity Deals

WESTPAC'S David Morgan last week urged caution about the torrent of private equity deals, saying the inflated asset values, highly geared takeovers and rising interests rates paralleled the boom and bust conditions of the 1980s. What is unclear about the debt-fuelled private equity bubble, however, is who will be left wearing the losses when it ends.

Competition A Concern As Equity Firms Hunt In Packs

THE Wall Street Journal disclosed this week that the US Department of Justice is conducting a probe into the potentially anti-competitive behaviour of private equity firms. Perhaps the Justice Department ought to talk to Coles Myer.

Miners Fair Game For Private Equity, Says Citigroup

IT IS hard to imagine BHP Billiton facing a private equity bid, but the world's biggest investment bank, Citigroup, says it is possible.

Private Equity Tipped For Belated Take-off

PRIVATE equity is expected to increase its importance in the Australian capital markets significantly in the next two years.