Pru boss Thiam in line for £2.1m bonus ahead of AGM - papers

Prudential chief executive Tidjane Thiam is likely to receive his full bonus this year in a move which could prove controversial with shareholders still upset over the cost of his failed bid for AIA.

The maximum payout he is eligible under a long-term bonus agreement is £2.1m, in a performance package he received on joining Prudential in March 2008, the Telegraph reports.

But including other pay agreements under his current deal, Thiam's total payout could reach £4.6m.

A spokesman for Prudential declined to comment on whether Thiam would receive his maximum bonus entitlements.

Investors are still upset with Thiam over Prudential's aborted $35.5bn (£22bn) bid for the Asian operations of US insurance group AIG, which ended up costing the insurer £377m in fees to advisers.

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Tchenguiz arm enters administration after SFO arrest

The holding company of Vincent Tchenguiz's property management arm was forced into administration by its board on Monday, the Financial Times reports.

It occurred less than a week after the property tycoon and his brother Robert were arrested by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) as part of a probe into the 2008 collapse of Kaupthing, the Icelandic bank.

Last week, Peverel, the UK's largest property management company, failed to meet a demand by Bank of America Merrill Lynch to repay corporate debt of about £125m ($202m).

The administration process is not directly related to the arrest of the Tchenguiz brothers, according to people with knowledge of the bank's decision.

But in a statement, Vincent Tchenguiz said the bank's action was "a direct result" of the SFO investigation.

The Tchenguiz brothers were arrested and released without charge on Wednesday last week.

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Optimism returns to UK private sector

Growth expectations in the UK private sector as well as abroad have strengthened in recent months, two surveys suggest, according to the Financial Times.

The findings suggest mature economies are now catching up with the optimism seen in emerging markets.

A study of British companies in the manufacturing and services sectors, conducted by Markit Economics on behalf of KPMG, found both were experiencing greater optimism for business over the next 12 months.

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