Business news in brief

In the Region

Cigna shares rise on purchase of Denver company

Shares of Cigna Corp., Philadelphia, closed up nearly 9 percent yesterday after the insurer said it completed its purchase of Great-West Healthcare Holdings Inc., Denver, for $1.5 billion. The deal, announced in November, is part of a push by Cigna to sell health insurance to small companies. Great-West specializes in insuring companies that have fewer than 200 employees. Shares of Cigna rose $3.61, or 8.90 percent, at $44.18. - Harold Brubaker

Corzine signs trade deal with China amid criticism

Gov. Corzine and officials from China's Shandong Province signed a cultural and trade agreement meant to boost economic ties between the two. Activists, however, questioned Corzine's move amid scrutiny of China's human rights policies. Shandong Province has several major seaports and is a key production region for grain, cotton and oil for the communist nation. New Jersey companies export about $900 million in goods annually to China. - AP

Luminent to switch from REIT to L.L.C.

Luminent Mortgage Capital Inc., a Philadelphia company that got squeezed by last summer's credit crunch, said it planned to convert from its status as a real estate investment trust because it was unable to meet its distribution requirements last year. Real estate investment trusts are required to distribute 95 percent of their earnings to shareholders to avoid taxation at the corporate level. Luminent filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission detailing the proposed restructuring into a publicly traded partnership known as Luminent L.L.C. - Harold Brubaker

Rendell to allow new drilling in Pa. state forests

Despite opposition from environmentalists, the Rendell administration will give exploration companies thirsty to capitalize on sky-high natural gas prices new territory to drill in Pennsylvania's state forests. The state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources said it was ending a five-year-old moratorium on allowing new shallow wells and would auction the rights to drill on an additional 75,000 acres of state forest land for the first time since 2002. - AP

Pa. can regulate facilities with radioactive uses

Pennsylvania will be allowed to regulate nearly 700 medical facilities, colleges and businesses that use certain radioactive materials under an agreement with the federal government. The agreement with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission makes Pennsylvania the 35th state to be allowed to license, inspect and enforce regulations for such facilities, most of which are medical facilities that use nuclear-medicine procedures to treat patients. - AP

FinTech files to raise money to acquire companies

FinTech Acquisition Corp. filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission to raise up to $100 million, said the Bancorp Inc., a bank holding company in Wilmington sponsoring the new entity. FinTech intends to buy companies that sell technological services to financial-services providers. - Harold Brubaker

NCO Group reports loss for 2007 fourth quarter

NCO Group Inc., a Horsham debt collector and customer-service provider, reported a loss of $22.1 million for the 2007 fourth quarter. The privately held company blamed a "weaker collection environment," the effect of foreign-currency exchange rates, unexpected changes in client programs, and the economy's "consumer-driven downturn." - Paul Schweizer

Toll Bros. can ask Burlco for roads recalculation

Toll Bros. Inc. can return to the Burlington County Planning Board to request a recalculation of road-improvement obligations at its Laurel Creek development, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled Monday. The justices overturned an appellate court decision that prevented the Horsham luxury-home developer from asking the planning board to review required improvements now that Toll has substantially scaled back plans for the 540-acre site in Moorestown and Mount Laurel Townships. - Al Heavens

Tasty Baking Co.'s new building begins to rise

Tasty Baking Co. said builders broke ground for construction of the Philadelphia company's new $75 million bakery on a 25-acre site at the Philadelphia Navy Yard. The project, announced last year, received $32 million in subsidized loans from Pennsylvania and from the Philadelphia Industrial Development Corp. - Harold Brubaker

Safeguard Scientifics has loss of 56 cents a share

Safeguard Scientifics Inc., a Wayne company that invests in technology and life-sciences companies, reported a net loss of $64.83 million, or 53 cents a share, last year. In 2006, the company's net income of $45.91 million, or 38 cents a share, benefited from the sale of several businesses. Excluding the results of those sales, Safeguard lost $68.1 million, or 56 cents a share, on revenue of $176.12 million in 2007, compared with a net loss of $43.9 million, or 36 cents a share, on revenue of $162.64 million in 2006. - Harold Brubaker

Europeans give special status to Tengion bladder

Tengion Inc., East Norriton, said European regulators had designated its regenerative bladder, made from a patient's own cells, as an "orphan medicinal product." The status, which can speed the time to approval and reduce certain costs, is designated when experimental products meet a medical need for which there are not similar products. The European Medicines Agency and European Commission granted "orphan status" for Tengion's "neo-bladder" for patients with defective bladders due to spina bifida. If approved to sell, Tengion would receive 10 years of marketing exclusivity in European Union countries. - Linda Loyd

Madva named Philadelphia prison board head

Mayor Nutter has appointed Stephen A. Madva, chairman of the Montgomery McCracken law firm, head of the board of trustees of the Philadelphia prison system. The board provides primary oversight of daily operations of city prisons and supervises efforts to educate and prepare inmates for their eventual release and reentry into society. - Chris Mondics

Elsewhere

Fannie Mae program to help homeowners

Fannie Mae introduced a new program - called HomeSaver Advance - to help delinquent borrowers avoid foreclosure. Fannie Mae will lend up to 15 percent, or $15,000, of the unpaid principal balance to bring a loan up to date. After a six-month period of no interest and no payments, the loans will carry a fixed rate of 5 percent with a total term of 15 years. Lawrence T. Phelan, managing partner at Phelan, Hallinan & Schmieg L.L.P., one of Fannie Mae's foreclosure law firms in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, said he expected this program to be a big help because "most Fannie Mae reinstatements are less than" $15,000. The HomeSaver Advance loans can be made in connection with any mortgage purchased by Fannie Mae or bundled into a mortgage-backed security by Fannie Mae. Borrowers in bankruptcy or who previously have had debt discharged in bankruptcy are not eligible. - Harold Brubaker