Pair raise £1.35bn for oil firms raid

Former BP boss Tony Hayward and financier Nat Rothschild yesterday revealed they had raised £1.35 billion from investors to create a bid vehicle to target privately held oil firms in emerging markets.

The haul was higher than the 1bn the pair had set out to raise. Their Vallares investment vehicle has two years to strike a deal, or return the cash, and will begin trading on the London Stock Exchange on 22 June.

Rodney Chase, deputy chief executive at BP under Hayward's predecessor, John Browne, is chairman of Vallares, while Jim Leng, ex-chairman of steel maker Corus, sits on the board.