AN POST EYEING UK TOP-UP MARKET - An Post is in advanced negotiations to buy a British maker of machines which recharge pre-paid mobile phones with credit, the Irish Times understands.
The State-owned postal company, which is seeking to cut its staff by 1,140, is believed to be preparing to pay up to €8m for e.Commercell. Discussions with e.Commercell's owner, Caudwell Group, are expected to conclude soon, says the paper.
E.Commercell has up to 10,000 terminals at retail outlets in Britain and Spain and it signed a deal last year with Eircell Vodafone. It competes in the terminals business with companies such as Alphyra - the former ITG.
***
ELAN NEEDS 'RADICAL ACTION' - Drug company Elan was up 6% on the Dublin stock market yesterday, boosted by a strong close on the New York stock exchange on Friday, the Irish Independent says.
It quotes Goodbody pharmaceutical analyst Ian Hunter as saying that the company needs to take radical action to rebuild investor confidence.
Hunter calls for high-level additions to the management team and improved communications with the investment community. He also calls on Elan to address its accountancy issues.
***
AIB WAS PLANNING TIGHTER CONTROLS - AIB recognised that its financial controls needed tightening almost a year before it suffered a $750m loss at the hands of alleged rogue currency trader John Rusnak, the Financial Times reports.
The FT says the bank implemented the plans to strengthen control over its US treasury operations, where Rusnak worked, only after the huge alleged fraud came to light last week.
In an interview with the paper, chief executive Michael Buckley admitted that the decision last week to centralise all treasury functions had already been on the agenda.
Mr Buckley also said the bank had been in a position for six to eight weeks to move Allfirst's treasury on to a new technology platform with tighter risk controls. The FT says the admission is likely lead to regulators and investors questioning why controls over the US subsidiary, Allfirst, were not tightened earlier.
***
RED TAPE STRANGLING EUROPEAN DRUG SECTOR - Hank McKinnell, the head of US drug giant Pfizer, has accused European healthcare regulators of killing the pharmaceuticals industry in Europe, reports the Daily Telegraph.
'Germany used to be called the medicine chest of Europe,' he said last night. 'Now it is New York, New Jersey and Connecticut.'
He said Europe's share of the world pharmaceuticals market has fallen from 32% to 22% in the past decade, owing to the price controls and other restrictions placed on producers.
