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) At Home: Debt consolidation loans can be shark-infested swim to solvency
To the person drowning in debt, a debt-consolidation loan looks a lot like a lifesaver. But reaching for it without knowing exactly what it's made of could be a serious mistake. The way it's supposed to work: You pay off all your small, high-interest consumer debts with the proceeds of a new low-interest loan whose payment is less than the total of the smaller payments. In theory, consolidation is a terrific solution for a burdensome debt situation. In reality, it can force you into even more treacherous waters. Basically, there are three ways to consolidate: 1. A new low-interest signature (unsecured) loan from an individual, bank or credit union. If you can get it, this type of debt consolidation is ideal. 2. Transferring all of the balances to a new credit card. More>> - (
) Fitch Downgrades Fidelity National Information Services to 'BB' on Acquisition; Sec. Bank Debt 'BB+'
--4.75% senior notes (equally and ratably secured with the new bank facility) affirmed at 'BB+'.(a) The secured term loans consist of a $2.1 billion term loan A and a $1.6 billion term loan B.
Fitch also withdraws the following rating:
--Senior unsecured credit facility 'BB+'.
The Rating Outlook is Stable. Pro Forma for the close of the EFD acquisition, approximately $4.8 billion in debt is affected by Fitch's actions, including the credit facility.
The IDR downgrade reflects higher leverage pro forma for the mostly debt-financed EFD acquisition as well as the resulting integration risk and relative lower financial flexibility.
FIS announced its agreement to acquire EFD on June 27, 2007 for $1.8 billion in cash consideration. More>>
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) Desperate debtors risk all with secured loans
Habitual viewers of daytime television will have seen Carol Vorderman in adverts, cashing in on her mathematical prowess on Channel 4's Countdown to promote secured loans. Her sales pitch for Firstplus, a division of Barclays, has prompted several protests by campaign groups.The reason why she gets such criticism is that secured loans are often taken out by people in financial distress. Managing your Debt, a new book published by Which?, warns that demand for secured loans is growing rapidly as homeowners search for solutions to their debt problems. The Consumer Credit Counselling Service (CCCS), a debt advice charity, has seen a sharp rise in the last year in the number of homeowners getting into problems after signing up for a secured loan.
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) p0356 BC-Sweden-Dubai-Nasdaq 1stLd-Writethru 09-20 0996
Eds: New with comment. Moving on financial services. By KARL RITTER Associated Press Writer STOCKHOLM, Sweden (AP) -- The Nasdaq Stock Market is selling a nearly 20 percent stake to Borse Dubai and is taking control of the Nordic exchange operator OMX as part of a sweeping settlement of their battle for control of OMX. In a global stock market shakeup, Borse Dubai and a group from Qatar also moved to become the largest stakeholders in the London Stock Exchange. The deals announced Thursday would help the U.S.-based Nasdaq avoid a bidding war with cash-rich Borse Dubai for OMX. But the transactions involving Dubai and Nasdaq could face scrutiny in the United States, where a Dubai-owned company's plan to manage some U.S. ports previously raised an uproar. The Nasdaq Stock Market Inc. would take control of Stockholm-based OMX while selling to Borse Dubai a one-fifth stake in itself as well as a 28 percent in the London Stock Exchange. More>> - (
) Fitch s code of conduct, confidentiality, conflicts of interest, affiliate firewall, compliance and other
12/10/2007 19:19:00 Business Wire Fitch Ratings today affirmed Jamaica s ratings and the Stable Outlook as follows: --Foreign and local currency Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) B+ ; --Country ceiling BB- ; --Bond obligations B+/RR4 .
Jamaica s ratings are supported by its political stability, and a debt service record that is better than those of many rating peers.
The rating also incorporates the institutional strengths of the country that have allowed it to service its crushing debt burden even during periods of extreme financial stress, such as that seen in 2002/03.
The general consensus between the two leading political parties over the main thrust of economic policy is also a relative strength.
In spite of meager growth in recent years and continued high levels of poverty - in contrast with the trend seen in some Latin countries - both parties appear to favor relatively orthodox policy framework. More>> - (
) Accor Continued Strong Revenue Growth, up 8.5% in the First Nine Months of 2007
PARIS, | Accor's consolidated revenue for the first nine months of 2007 totaled EUR6,119 million, an increase of 8.5% over the same period of 2006. At constant scope of consolidation and exchange rates, the like-for-like increase was 6.3%, confirming the favorable trend enjoyed by the Services and Hotels businesses since the beginning of the year.The expansion strategy accounted for 7.6% of revenue growth for the first nine months of the year. Disposals carried out under the ongoing asset-right strategy in the Hotels business and the divestment of non-strategic assets - including Go Voyages, which was sold in April - reduced revenue by 4.4%.
The currency effect was a negative 1.1% for the period.
Services
Reported nine-month revenue up 14.9%
Services revenue for the first nine months of the year rose 14.9%, including like-for-like growth of 12.1%. More>>