The Press Association, 7th July 2009
Shane Warne celebrated his last match at Lord's by leading the Rajasthan Royals to a 46-run victory over Middlesex Panthers in the inaugural British Asian Cup.
Warne drew a large cheer from the 20,000 crowd each time he entered the attack with his solitary breakthrough - a stumping of Dawid Malan - a popular wicket among fans and team-mates.
All the attention may have been focused on Warne but Dimitri Mascarenhas emerged as the star as the Royals posted 162 for five in their rain-affected innings, smashing 32 off 16 balls.
The England all-rounder then took two wickets for just 24 runs as last year's Indian Premier League winners easily dealt with the reigning English Twenty20 champions in the first meeting between sides from the competitions.
Middlesex could only manage 116 for seven in reply, Malan's 34 from as many balls and Neil Dexter's 26 from 24 among their few highlights in a one-sided contest.
Sharecast, 30th June 2009
Overall profitability has improved “significantly” in the first six months of 2009 at debt advice firm Fairpoint ahead of the seasonally stronger second half.
The financial performance was in line with expectations as improvements delivered in the second half of last year led to gains in operational efficiency and cash generation.
Fairpoint is confident that the full-year result will be in line with market expectations.
It said continued operational improvements resulted in historically high conversion rates from a lower cost base.
The use of selective marketing channels is generating strong year-on-year profit growth from lower spend and lower lead volumes.
Net borrowings are seen falling from £8.6m at the end of 2008 to £6.5m at 30 June 2009.
Interim results are due on 15 September.
Financial Times, 17th March 2009
Fairpoint, formerly known as Debt Free Direct, saw an increase in individual voluntary arrangements in the final quarter after a weak first half.
Chris Moat, chief executive, said the group had improved its conversion rate of leads into IVAs, and was also starting to realise the value of the debt management plan division, which was launched last summer to cater for lower levels of indebtedness.
He expected rising unemployment to drive the market, but he warned that once a period of unemployment went above six months, there was a risk of the customer breaching the IVA.
Pre-tax profits for the year to December 31 were £1.1m compared with a loss of £501,000 for the previous eight-month period, when revenues were £19.9m. Excluding exceptional reorganisation costs and amortisation, profits were £2.9m on revenues of £26.5m.
CricInfo Staff, February 3rd, 2009
Rajasthan Royals, the reigning IPL champions, have sold an approximate 12% stake in their franchise for US$15.4 million to Shilpa Shetty, the Bollywood actress, and her partner Raj Kundra, a UK-based businessman. That puts the valuation of the franchise at around $140 million, more than double the $67 million the owners, Emerging Media, paid for it a little over a year ago.
Shetty, winner of the UK TV show Celebrity Big Brother in 2006, is the fourth Bollywood personality to be associated with the IPL, after Preity Zinta (Kings XI Punjab), Shah Rukh Khan and Juhi Chawla (Kolkata Knight Riders).
Manoj Badale, representing Emerging Media, described the new deal - the first known instance of a franchise selling part of its stake - as "a strategic alliance".The focus last year, he said, was to make Rajasthan Royals a well-known brand in India; this year the strategy is to globalise it.
"We want to make Rajasthan Royals into more than a cricket franchise, want to make it into a global brand. It was the second-most popular team in all of India last year," he said.
Coming as it does in the middle of a global economic recession, the news will further hearten the game's administrators. On Monday, the IPL released the base prices for Friday's auction, with two players - Kevin Pietersen and Michael Clarke - valued at a million dollars or more and Andrew Flintoff at $950,000.
The Financial Times, Published: December 7 2008 23:35
By Martin Arnold, Private Equity Correspondent
Investcorp, the Bahrain-based investment group, will on Monday unveil a new investment in a debt-collection services company, highlighting how private equity groups are hunting for counter-cyclical companies that can survive the economic downturn.
The £28m deal would make Investcorp the biggest shareholder in TDX Group, a Nottingham-based company that sells more than two-fifths of all defaulted unsecured consumer debt for banks, utilities and others in the UK.
Mumbai: Spin legend Shane Warne and the Rajasthan Royals team expressed shock at the Mumbai terror attacks and said they stand by the city in its hour of crisis.
"We are disappointed to not be playing (in Champions League) but right now our thoughts are with the people affected by this tragedy," Warne, captain-coach of Rajasthan Royals, said in a statement.
Warne was on his way to Mumbai for the now-postponed Champions Twenty20 League but once he heard about the attacks, he stayed put in Singapore before deciding to return home.
Royals chairman Manoj Badale also expressed shock at the attacks and said, "We are deeply saddened by the tragic incidents that took place in Mumbai on Wednesday. We think of Mumbai as a second home for the Royals, and we all feel terrible right now for the wonderful people of Mumbai who make it such a vibrant city."
23rd October 2008, Jaipur
Riding on their fabulous success in the inaugural edition of the Indian Premier League, Rajasthan Royals are now trying to increase their fan base and the franchise has launched an exclusive membership programme.
The vice-chairman of Rajasthan Royals, Ravi Krishnan said his team was first among the IPL franchises to start such an initiative. "We wish to raise a number of ardent fans who would support their team in Rajasthan and when it is playing at other places," Krishnan said.
Technology firm eviivo has launched a new accommodation website aimed at the SME market. www.bookingangels.com gives real-time access to more than 2,000 medium size hotels, guest houses, and B&Bs around the country, searchable by star rating, type of property and hotel facilities.
To incentivise SMEs to use the site, it is paying travel bookers 5% of their accommodation spend in commission, which can be exchanged for gift vouchers or to book other hotels on the site. VAT-registered companies can choose to receive this 5% commission by cheque.
Nigel David, eviivo’s CEO, said: “BookingAngels.com enables companies to source and book quality accommodation in an instant. It takes bookings 24 hours a day with real time access to the full room inventory. Whether the brief is to accommodate a travelling sales force, workers on a project, or find a boutique hotel for a CEO, there is something for all tastes, budgets and occasions.
“We are confident that in this challenging economic climate, these value for money properties will benefit the increasing number of companies seeking to cut business travel expenditure”.
To be included in the company’s system, hotel owners have to use eviivo’s frontdesk reservations technology, which pushes content out to 40 partners, including Expedia and hotels.com.
The Independent, 14th September 2008
Mark Onyett, chief executive of the fast-growing debt management firm TDX Group, is selling a stake in the business that will value it at around £100m.
William Blair & Company, the US investment bank, has been hired to sell a stake that would raise around £25m. An information memorandum is with potential purchasers.
Mr Onyett, who founded the Nottingham-based TDX four years ago and has turned it into a company with £30m turnover, said: "We hope to close the process by the end of November. We want to double the size of the business over the next three years, so this [investment] would be used for growth capital."
The company has global ambitions, and the appointment of William Blair has suggested to some market sources that the US is the next growth area. Mr Onyett confirmed America is "one area of interest".
TDX Group, the leading provider of analytics-based debt management, today launches The Debt Standard - the UK’s first independently awarded quality mark for responsible and ethical debt solutions companies.
The Debt Standard addresses an urgent need to simplify the complex and confusing debt solutions market. TDX Group describes consumers seeking a way out of a debt problem as ‘extremely vulnerable' and believes that many are ‘panic buying’ the first debt solution they’re offered. The company points to figures from its own market study which shows that, of the £9 billion set to flow into debt solutions during 2008, around £8.1 billion (90%) will be managed by the first debt solution provider the debtor had spoken to.
The Debt Standard will enable over-indebted consumers to select the most appropriate advice when seeking a debt solution. Its quality mark will provide an instantly recognisable signpost - guiding consumers towards accredited IVA, Debt Management Plan and Trust Deed solution providers.
Read the full article here.