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• AirAsia X to sell 20 percent stake to Japan's Orix, Bahrain fund

  - 2008-02-12

  KUALA LUMPUR AFP — Malaysia's AirAsia X will raise 75 million dollars by selling a 20 percent stake in the budget carrier to private equity funds from Japan and Bahrain, an airline official said Wednesday. "The money will be used to fund the purchase of 25 Airbus A330-300 for...

  Tags: Agence France-Presse, Bahrain, FINANCE, Investment, Japan, Virgin Group

• Ex-Lloyd's boss to head nationalised Northern Rock

  - 2008-01-12

  LONDON AFP — The former head of Lloyd's insurance market, Ron Sandler, said Saturday he has been appointed to lead troubled British bank Northern Rock should it be nationalised. "In the event of nationalisation, I have agreed I will go in as executive chairman," Sandler said in a statement,...

  Tags: Agence France-Presse, bank, Government, Virgin Group

• Olivant details 'simpler' offer for Northern Rock

  - 2007-12-07

  LONDON AFP — The Olivant group of British investors on Friday unveiled a rescue plan for troubled lender Northern Rock, saying it was much more straightforward than one submitted by preferred bidder Richard Branson's Virgin Group. "It's much simpler. It's much less fuss ... We can be there helping...

  Tags: Agence France-Presse, FINANCE, Government, SOFTWARE, Virgin Group

• British finance chief defends Northern Rock bailout

  - 2007-11-27

  LONDON AFP — Britain's under-fire finance minister Alistair Darling on Tuesday defended his government's decision to support troubled bank Northern Rock, arguing it was in the best interests of the economy. His comments came on the final day of an annual conference held by the country's biggest employers' organisation,...

  Tags: Agence France-Presse, Britain, conference, consortium, FINANCE, Government, SOFTWARE, Taxes, Virgin Group

• European, Asian stocks jump after Wall Street rally

  - 2007-11-26

  LONDON AFP — European and Asian share prices rallied Monday on Wall Street gains sparked by hopes the United States would avoid a recession, dealers said. But they added that markets around the region may remain volatile this week as investors are still cautious about the outlook for the...

  Tags: Agence France-Presse, FINANCE, investor, London, SALES, stock, Virgin Group

• Britain's Northern Rock confirms preliminary talks with buyers

  - 2007-10-15

  LONDON AFP — Stricken British mortgage lender Northern Rock said Monday it was in preliminary talks with a number of potential buyers or investors, but did not name the interested parties. The home loan provider ran into trouble last month when credit market turmoil forced it to ask the...

  Tags: Agence France-Presse, bank, Bank of England, FINANCE, investor, Virgin Group

• Virgin planning to publicly list businesses: CEO

  - 2007-08-19

  LONDON AFP — Virgin Group, which runs airline Virgin Atlantic and other well-known brands, is planning to publicly list companies it owns on the stock market, the group's chief executive said in an interview published on Monday. Speaking to The Times, Stephen Murphy, who is also the head of...

  Tags: Agence France-Presse, FINANCE, Investment, Murphy, Virgin Group

• Branson's Virgin Group takes 20 percent of Malaysia's AirAsia

  - 2007-08-09

  KUALA LUMPUR AFP — Richard Branson's Virgin Group is taking a 20 percent stake in Malaysia's AirAsia long-haul carrier, with the British billionaire vowing Friday to pilot the project into profitability. "Sir Richard Branson of Virgin Group is our new strategic global investment partner," said Kalimullah Hassan of Fly...

  Tags: Agence France-Presse, Branson, carrier, Fax, FINANCE, Investment, Malaysia, Virgin Group

• Virgin's Branson to form alliance with AirAsia for long-haul ops

  - 2007-08-06

  KUALA LUMPUR AFP — Asian low-cost airline pioneer Tony Fernandes looks set to score a major coup with British businessman Richard Branson coming on board to help get his struggling, high-risk long-haul venture off the ground, analysts said Tuesday. Branson of Virgin Group is to take a 20 percent...

  Tags: Agence France-Presse, alliance, carrier, Fax, Virgin, Virgin Group

• Virgin America cleared for US takeoff

  - 2007-05-18

  WASHINGTON AFP — The US government said Friday it had cleared Virgin America Airlines for take off in American skies after the carrier reformed its links to British billionaire Richard Branson's Virgin Group. The decision by the US Department of Transportation DoT is a victory for Virgin America's bid...

  Tags: Agence France-Presse, carrier, DoT, U.S. Department of Transportation, U.S. Government, Virgin Group