Fidelity tops in convention center use

A decade after Fidelity Investments constructed its first office building in Smithfield, the Boston-based mutual-fund company has become the top user of the Rhode Island Convention Center. Every December, Fidelity hosts a holiday party there, as well as a national sales meeting for its Investments Institutional Services division. In addition, the company’s Advisor Distribution Group meets there annually, and twice a year the Personal Investments division gathers. Five years ago, Fidelity hosted only its holiday party locally, but now the company is the largest single revenue source for the state-owned convention center, according to John J. McGinn, senior director of sales and marketing for the facility. “It’s a great opportunity for us to increase our revenues in the meetings market, he said. “They’re doing so much business here now.” In recognition, the convention center invited Fidelity’s meeting planners earlier this month to watch a Dancing with the Stars performance from the new luxury suites at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center.

Dexter Credit Union boosts return

Dexter Credit Union held its 58th annual meeting at St. Matthew’s Church Hall in Central Falls recently and reported that assets at the end of last year totaled $98.3 million and deposits were $85.9 million. The credit union also returned more than $2.7 million in dividends and interest to the members, which represents an 18-percent increase, or an additional $412,000 over the previous year. In addition, the following members were elected for three-year terms on the board of directors: Marisol Garcia, of Central Falls; Angelo L. Lanni, of Cumberland; and Roy Silva, of Smithfield. The following directors were elected as officers for one-year terms at the 59th organizational meeting of the board Feb. 12: Silva, chairman; Lanni, first vice chair; Mark W. Enander, Lincoln, second vice chair; Garcia, secretary; and John A. Soares III, Johnston, treasurer.

Ruling on Amgen rival tomorrow

U.S. District Judge William G. Young is scheduled to rule tomorrow in Boston on a bid by Amgen Inc. to keep Roche Holding AG from selling the anemia drug Mircera in the United States. Young will decide on Roche’s request to overturn an October jury verdict that Mircera infringes upon Amgen’s patents. Amgen, the California-based company that makes the rheumatoid arthritis drug Enbrel in West Greenwich, is trying to block competition of its top-selling anemia drugs Aransep and Epogen. With combined sales of $6.63 billion last year, the drugs accounted for 46 percent of Amgen’s revenue. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration gave Roche regulatory approval in November to sell Mircera. The court fight is the only obstacle preventing sales in the United States.

Former insurance executives convicted

A jury in Hartford found five former insurance company executives guilty Monday of a scheme to manipulate the financial statements of the world’s largest insurance company, American International Group Inc. The four former executives of General Re Corp. and a former executive of AIG were convicted of conspiracy, securities fraud, mail fraud and making false statements to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Prosecutors said they participated in a scheme in which AIG paid Gen Re as part of a secret side agreement to take out reinsurance policies with AIG in 2000 and 2001, propping up its stock price and inflating reserves by $500 million.

Amica repeats top-25 customer-service award

For the second consecutive year, Amica Mutual Insurance Co., of Lincoln, has ranked among the top 25 “Customer Service Champs” in a BusinessWeek magazine special report. The mutual insurance company and its 3,000 employees have consistently received recognition from national consumer publications and the insurance industry in the area of customer service, according to the report in BusinessWeek. This latest credit focuses on the people and process — or customer feedback and technical strategies — that combine to deliver superior service, the report says. Amica ranked number-13 and was one of two insurance companies on the magazine’s second annual list, which included a wide spectrum of well-known national corporations. The cover story and rankings are featured in BusinessWeek’s March 3 issue and on the magazine’s Web site: www.businessweek.com/magazine. “Consistent customer service is our strength,” said Robert A. DiMuccio, the company’s president and chief executive officer, in response to the magazine’s article.

L.L. Bean casts a line into Midwest markets

Outdoor gear and apparel outfitter L.L. Bean, of Freeport, Maine, announced Monday a retail expansion into the upper Midwest. In September, the 96-year-old company will open its first store in the Chicago area, its first store expansion outside the Northeast corridor. Planning is underway for a 30,000-square-foot store at the Arboretum at South Barrington, amid Chicago’s affluent northwest suburbs. As part of the company’s commitment to environmental sustainability, the store will be built to U.S. Green Building Council standards, which incorporate use of recycled and reclaimed materials as well as energy-efficient heating, cooling and lighting. The expansion is part of L.L. Bean’s strategy to operate 32 stores by 2012.

Dominion ranked 11th among corporate citizens

Richmond, Va.-based Dominion Resources Inc., which owns power stations in Providence, Somerset and Salem, Mass. and Waterford, Conn., has been ranked 11th among the “100 Best Corporate Citizens” for 2008 by CRO (Corporate Responsibility Officer) magazine. The large, publicly owned companies that make up the Russell 1000 Index were ranked based on their efforts and performance in climate change, employee relations, environment, financial, governance, human rights, lobbying and philanthropy. Dominion was the second-highest ranked utility, just behind number-10 PG&E. Dominion was ranked especially high in environment (61st among the 1,000 companies considered) and philanthropy (89th) categories. The top 10 companies are Intel, Eaton, Nike, Deere, Genentech, Corning, Humana, Bank of America, ITT and PG&E.

N.H. clears Verizon sale to FairPoint

New Hampshire regulators on Monday approved the sale of Verizon’s landline phone and Internet service in northern New England to North Carolina-based FairPoint Communications, saying they believe FairPoint has shown that the proposed deal will benefit the public. Maine, Vermont and the Federal Communications Commission have already approved the $2.35-billion deal. The approval is the last major regulatory hurdle for the sale to go through. The companies hope to close the deal by the end of March, said FairPoint spokeswoman Rose Cummings. FairPoint and Verizon announced more than a year ago plans for FairPoint to take over Verizon’s 1.7 million phone and Internet lines in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont. FairPoint now has a total of just over 300,000 lines through the 30 phone companies it owns in 18 states.

Vermont nuke plant wins NRC staff nod

The staff of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff gave its blessing Monday to the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant’s request to extend its license for 20 years beyond its currently scheduled 2012 expiration date. In a safety evaluation report, the regulators said the plant’s operators had satisfied the requirements of federal law. That leaves two more major steps before the approval is granted: a review by the NRC’s Advisory Committee on Reactor Safeguards, which holds a hearing next month, and a hearing next summer by a quasi-judicial panel affiliated with the federal agency on an anti-nuclear group’s concerns about extending the license. Located in Vernon on the Connecticut River in Vermont’s southeast corner, Vermont Yankee opened in 1972, and its original, 40-year license is set to expire March 31, 2012.