Who leaves you hanging? In London, it’s banks March 10, 2021 Banks are the worst at answering customer service calls in the capital, with 33 per cent of Londoners saying it is financial institutions that led them wait the longest, if they are able to get through at all. A new Moneypenny survey, revealing the organisations that are worst at answering the phone, singled out utility [...]
Monzo backer Passion Capital opens doors to retail investors March 10, 2021 One of the earliest backers of fintech favourite Monzo is opening its doors to crowd investors with the launch of its third fund. Passion Capital’s £45m fund will be open to any investors who self-certify as “high net worth” or “sophisticated” and are registered and qualified by the crowdfunding platform Seedrs. It will give retail [...]
Technology on stage: How becoming bionic will boost my acting career March 9, 2021 | City Talk We are often told how brand-new technology is changing humanity, but we rarely hear enough about how it is impacting individual humans. In December 2020 I joined a unique club of individuals who have been fitted with a 3D-printed bionic arm. The robotic arm is designed and manufactured by Bristol-based Open Bionics and mine was [...]
Impact-Weighted Accounting: the missing ingredient? March 9, 2021 | City Talk Sustainable investment capital increasingly demands evidence that positive impact is produced alongside positive financial return. Once adopted by investors, transparent impact metrics will initiate a rotation in portfolios that moves them away from ‘impact negative’ and toward ‘impact positive’ investments. This impact-driven rotation should produce environmental, social and governance (ESG) Alpha for investors. Impact is [...]
No more fifty shades of green March 8, 2021 | Sponsored For quite some time now the term ‘fifty shades of green’ has been used to describe the investor challenge of wading through a sea of sustainable investment options, from dark green, to light green to just plain green-washing. The sustainable investment sector has grown exponentially in recent years, and while I very much welcome the [...]
Chasing “financial independence retire early” (FIRE): is it possible? March 8, 2021 | City Talk At what age are you planning to retire? For many the standard answer to this is “somewhere in my 60s or beyond”. Schroders analysis suggests that if you start saving for your retirement at age 20, you’ll need to save between 12% – 15% of your salary for 40 years to retire on 50% of your [...]
Starling Bank secures unicorn status with £272m funding round March 8, 2021 Starling Bank today confirmed it has raised £272m in its largest ever funding round, confirming its status as Britain’s newest unicorn. The digital bank raised the funds in a series D round led by Fidelity Management and Research. The Qatar Investment Authority, Railpen — the investment manager for the £31bn Railways Pension Scheme — and [...]
Should you look at Irish whiskey as an investment? March 5, 2021 With St Patrick’s Day on the not-too-distant horizon, thoughts inevitably turn to iconic festivities to be enjoyed. For many this involves toasting a taoscán of Irish whiskey. The day and drink are synonymous with each other. But this year maybe you should think about investing instead of drinking your whiskey? The Irish end their toasts [...]
City Corporation creates new Covid Business Recovery Fund March 4, 2021 | City Talk The Court of Common Council, the City of London Corporation’s main decision-making body, has today (4 March) agreed to create a new Covid Business Recovery Fund of up to £50 million. At a virtual meeting, elected Members decided unanimously that grants from the Fund will be made available to small and independent retailers and hospitality [...]
Budget reactions: Optimism and relief to Sunak’s plans March 4, 2021 Following Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s announcement yesterday, of a raft of new support measures alongside plans to shore up Britain’s finances in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, the details of this year’s Budget gradually become clear to SMEs, entrepreneurs, startups and others in London and across the country. Sunak set out extensions to the furlough [...]
