http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5...Xfb-PdysSqdbqA
LONDON (AFP) ? Britain-based entrepreneur Robert Tchenguiz lost one billion pounds in 24 hours as the Icelandic banking crisis forced him to offload big stakes in British groups, the Financial Times said Thursday.
Iranian-born Tchenguiz sold stakes in supermarket chain J Sainsbury and pubs group Mitchells & Butlers at a loss of 1.26 billion euros or 1.73 billion dollars as the British unit of ailing Icelandic bank Kaupthing called in loans, the FT said.
Financial authorities revealed Thursday that Iceland's government has nationalised Kaupthing, the country's biggest bank, as the credit crunch had left it on the brink of collapse.
According to the FT, Tchenguiz lost up to 600 million pounds after selling 10 percent of J Sainsbury, Britain's third biggest supermarket chain. He also lost about 400 million pounds after divesting a 25.7-percent stake in Mitchells & Butlers. The deals took place over Tuesday and Wednesday.
The business daily added on Thursday that Tchenguiz had become one of the biggest individual casualties of the credit crunch in Britain.