Maggie’s Culture Crawl Walk through the night for people affected by cancer Friday 16 September 2016 Join us as we walk 10 miles through London at night, experiencing amazing architecture and cultural surprises. Register now: www.maggiescentres.org/cclondon Maggie Keswick Jencks Cancer Caring Centres Trust (Maggie’s) is a registered charity, No.SC024414
CITYAM.COM TUESDAY 9 AUGUST 2016 NEWS 11 Tech startup set to LoopUp float on Aim this year LYNSEY BARBER @lynseybarber A TECH startup based in London is planning to go public with a multimillion-pound listing on the capital’s junior market. LoopUp is reportedly seeking to raise £9m which would give the firm a market capitalisation of up to £45m. It is understood that the startup plans to list on the Alternative Investment Market (Aim) by the end of this month. LoopUp takes the hassle out of conference calling for businesses with software which streamlines the process, from reducing muffled noises to being able to share content while speaking. Customers include Alcatel Lucent and National Geographic and the London-headquartered firm has operations in San Francisco, New York, Boston and Hong Kong. City grandee Lady Barbara Judge will also join the startup as a chairman, which comes just days after she took up a similar role at a tech startup focused on HR. Revenues stood at £10.1m in 2015, a rise of 36 per cent on the previous year. The firm said it has been profitable in terms of Ebitda since 2013. The listing comes at an awkward time in the IPO market, which has frozen over the past several quarters globally particularly when it comes to technology companies. In the UK the vote in June to quit the European Union has added a more serious note of caution among many companies considering a float. LoopUp, named one of Tech City’s Future Fifty companies to watch, believes it’s exposure to any general market conditions is minimal, however. According to an analysis by EY, an already slow year for public listings is likely to continue as a result of the EU referendum The accountancy giant’s research IPO Eye noted that 2016 has already seen “subdued levels” of activity, with 13 listings tracked in the second quarter, down from 15 in the first. The second-quarter listings raised £553m in total, down 30 per cent on the first quarter and 52 per cent on the same period in 2015. IPO Eye noted that “a number of businesses that were prepared and could have listed as quickly as [the fourth quarter] are now expected to put their plans on hold until there is a more certain economic and political outlook in the UK”. Recent floats included media company Time Out and venture capital firm Draper Esprit. Members of Secret Escapes can get up to 70 per cent off on luxury holidays Secret Escapes jets off to France and other European countries FRANCESCA WASHTELL @fwashtell CUT-PRICE luxury holiday site Secret Escapes has no time to relax on the beach this summer, as the company has expanded its operations into another four European countries. The flash sales travel hub is now available in France, where it will be called Evasions Secretes, as well as Slovakia, Hungary and the Czech Republic. In Eastern Europe, it will go under the name Travelist. Secret Escapes is now operational in 21 countries worldwide and serves 32m members, up from four million in January 2014. Outside of Europe it has operations in the US, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore. Amazon’s HQ in Japan raided by authorities LYNSEY BARBER @lynseybarber THE OFFICES of Amazon in Japan were raided by authorities yesterday, according to local media. Officials from the Fair Trade Commission, the country’s competition watchdog, were probing the retail giant’s offices on suspicions that it unfairly forced sellers to favour its own platform over rival ones. Amazon Japan did not comment on the report while a spokesperson for the Fair Trade Commission did not confirm the report, but told Reuters: “I won’t say the contents are incorrect”. Separately, Amazon is under investigation by the anti-trust watchdog in Europe over the arrangements it makes with publishers for distributing e-books. Brussels is taking a closer look at Amazon’s contracts with publishers and whether the deals are anticompetitive and make it more difficult for other e-book distributors to compete, violating the EU’s antitrust rules. “Our investigation does not call that [Amazon’s business] into question,” said the Brussels-based competition tsar Margrethe Vestager. “However, it is my duty to make sure that Amazon’s arrangements with publishers are not harmful to consumers, by preventing other e- book distributors from innovating and competing effectively with Amazon.” Volkswagen investor lawsuits to be sped up ANDREAS CREMER A GERMAN court will adopt a rarely used class-action style procedure to more efficiently process claims by investors seeking damages from Volkswagen over a diesel emissions cheating scandal, according to a ruling. The regional court in Braunschweig near Volkswagen’s (VW) Wolfsburg headquarters said yesterday it will pick one case to act WILLIAM TURVILL @wturvill SHARES in Melrose Industries shot up 13 per cent yesterday as the London-listed turnaround group closed in on completing its deal for a US air conditioning company. Melrose announced that the “shop window period” on its deal for Nortek expired on 6 August without a superior offer being made. The UK company said competition conditions have already been satisfied and the as a model to help resolve as many as 170 other damages claims, the closest thing Germany has to classaction lawsuits common in the US. Private and institutional investors are suing VW alleging managers at the carmaker failed to disclose its involvement in a diesel emissions cheating scandal in a timely manner, a claim VW rejects. “VW continues to take the view that it has duly complied with disclosure rules related to deal has shareholder approval. The transaction is expected to close on 31 August. Melrose announced it had agreed a $2.8bn (£2.1bn) deal for the US heating and air conditioning company on 6 July. In the year to 31 December, Nortek reported revenue of $2.5bn and a headline operating profit of $220.1m. The deal is classified as a reverse takeover because of the size of the target. Yesterday, after Melrose announced the deal was set for completion this month, its shares securities law,” a spokesperson for the car giant said yesterday, adding the court’s decision to allow for a model proceeding is a “normal procedural step” that is also backed by VW. Most of the 170 cases have been filed by private investors with the largest case by lawyer Andreas Tilp filed on behalf of 277 institutional investors and worth €3.26bn (£2.77bn). Tilp has represented investors in many cases over capital market-disclosure issues. Reuters London-listed turnaround group’s shares soar 13pc as it seals air conditioning deal shot up more than 13 per cent to 775p. Announcing the deal last month, Melrose chief executive Simon Peckham said: “Nortek is a high quality manufacturing business with over 90 per cent of its turnover in North America and product penetration into 80 per cent of US households. “It serves attractive end markets at good points in their cycle, with strong brands and market positions. Nonetheless there remains solid potential for further improvement under Melrose’s guidance.” THE PRINT COMPANY WITH GLOBAL REACH & LOCAL PRESENCE Print Management is an issue faced by many businesses in the city. The Color Company are here e to help. Our range of services include onsite and offsite fsite print rooms, bid production, presentations, large format and exhibition graphics, all produced throughout the day and night. Do you have a Presentation in Paris, an Exhibition in Egypt or a Conference in California? 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