Tipping point: Why there’s never been a better time to start a business in Britain June 8, 2014 WE HAVE now heard Her Majesty the Queen utter the words small business and enterprise in Parliament. Last week, she announced the first ever bill dedicated to small firms in the Queen’s Speech: the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Bill. This was soon followed by a release from the Office for National Statistics showing the [...]
Banner Homes snapped up by Cala for £200m March 24, 2014 CALA Homes has made a further push into the more affluent south of England after buying luxury housebuilder Banner Homes yesterday for around £200m. The Edinburgh-based housebuilder, which develops upmarket properties in Scotland and in the Midlands has been looking to grow its presence in the south on the back of rising demand and said [...]
Venture capitalists pour £25m into big data firm eCommera February 24, 2014 FAST growing retail technology company eCommera, which works with huge retailers like Asda and House of Fraser, has secured a further $41m (£25m) in funding from investors, it said yesterday. The company, based in London, said investors like Sir Martin Sorrell’s WPP had put more cash into the company alongside backers such as West Coast [...]
Crime’s collapse masks the march of the cyber criminal April 23, 2014 IN AN era of squeezed budgets and public services under pressure, the police service continues to defy expectations. Yesterday had more good news, with data from A&E departments indicating a dramatic reduction in violent crime. A new study, led by professor Jonathan Shepherd at Cardiff University, found a 12 per cent fall in injuries due [...]
Property firms circle Lend Lease’s £550m Bluewater stake April 28, 2014 Some of the UK property industry’s biggest players are circling Lendlease’s £550m cent stake in Bluewater shopping centre in what could become a heated battle for the prized site. British Land, Land Securities, Hammerson, Westfield, Intu and M&G Real Estate are reported to have all lodged initial expression of interest in the Kent shopping centre, [...]
Inside Track: Rothschild shows independent advisers are on a roll February 13, 2014 AT THE top of Rothschild’s impressive and relatively newly-built London headquarters, a modern building set in the 17th century St Swithin’s Lane in the heart of the City, is an auditorium which the firm’s bankers use to host what are known as kick-off meetings for the flotations they’re working on. Over the past few months, [...]
Hodgson: England kids are alright May 12, 2014 Barkley, Shaw and Sterling are ready to shine at a World Cup, says manager ENGLAND manager Roy Hodgson insists his youthful squad is ready to challenge for the World Cup and has refuted claims that some starlets have been picked solely to gain major tournament experience. Hodgson yesterday confirmed a 23-man party for next month’s [...]
Veteran boss of UBS funds unit quits chief exec role after 13 years December 5, 2013 UBS ASSET management yesterday reshuffled its boardroom after long-standing chairman and chief executive John Fraser announced his retirement from the frontline. The money manager, which invests more than SFr580bn (£395bn) of other people’s money, said Fraser, 62, will step down as chief executive at the end of this month but stay on as chairman. The [...]
How Boohoo’s joined the queue of retailers flocking to market February 17, 2014 ONLINE fashion retailer boohoo.com is being groomed for a snap stock market flotation next month, joining the stampede of retail companies marching towards a London market listing this year. Boohoo.com, which is run by Manchester-based co-founders Carol Kane and Mahmud Kamani, is working with its financial broker Zeus Capital on plans for an initial public [...]
24 January on this day… January 23, 2014 24 JANUARY 1973. World Cup Qualifier: England 1 (Hunter) Wales 1 (Toshack). England skipper Bobby Moore (left) and Rodney Marsh (right) joke before kick-off, but the match would end with England booed off at Wembley after a scrappy draw; it was apparent a great era for English football was ending. The dropped point became crucial [...]