Hargreaves Lansdown chief on spats with the founder, his time at the top and the power of retail investors February 23, 2023 At times of turbulence, retail investors are entirely rational creatures. At least, that’s the view of Chris Hill, the outgoing boss of Britain’s largest retail investment and savings platform, Hargreaves Lansdown. Hill – who has been at the helm of the retail giant since 2016 and is preparing to step down in November – was [...]
Reserve release boosts Lloyds profits October 28, 2021 The release of reserves set aside to deal with an expected wave of pandemic-induced defaults boosted Lloyds’ profits. Profit before tax at Britain’s biggest mortgage lender in the three months to September climbed around £1bn compared to the same period last year. Lloyds’ bottom line was raised by the release of over £80m in reserves [...]
UK’s big five banks set to pay out £7bn in dividends as their earnings soar October 10, 2021 The UK’s largest banks are preparing to hand out a collective £7bn in dividends this year, on the back of earnings hitting their highest level for the sector since 2008. The £7bn payout would be more than double the £3.3bn handed out in dividends by the UK’s big five in 2020. The UK’s five largest [...]
English schools to move lessons online amid Omicron surge January 2, 2022 Schools in England are set to move some lessons online this term amid widespread absences caused by soaring Covid-19 cases.
The 30 rising dealmaking stars – but only one of them is a woman October 11, 2022 A NEW ranking of London’s ‘rising star’ public market dealmakers includes only one women in its list of the capital’s top 30 youngsters. The list, compiled by financial intelligence firm MergerLinks, is based on the size of deals and their perceived financial complexity. Goldman Sachs’ Cara Pazdon is the only woman on the list. The City has [...]
HSBC profits slide on looming inflation default wave April 26, 2022 A deterioration in borrowers’ credit worthiness caused by a historic cost of living squeeze prompted Britain’s biggest lender HSBC to set aside millions of pounds to deal with a rise in defaults. The bank, which sources a large proportion of its profits from China and Asia, banked $600m (£470m) in reserves to cope with a [...]
US financial markets watchdog chief warns cryptocurrency platforms will not survive without oversight September 1, 2021 The chief of the US financial markets watchdog has warned that cryptocurrency trading platforms are unlikely to have any future unless they collaborate with regulators. Gary Gensler, chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, that if the industry is going “to have any relevance five and 10 years from now, it’s going to be within [...]
THG ramps up governance overhaul and begins search for independent chair October 26, 2021 UK e-commerce company THG said this morning it has appointed a consulting firm to begin a search for a new independent chair for the company, in its latest attempt to appease City investors with doubts about the governance and transparency of the business. Alongside its third quarter results this morning, the group announced it had [...]
NatWest notches up £2.5bn in ‘resilient’ first half, as lending rises July 30, 2021 NatWest roped in some 2.5bn in operating profit before tax in the past six months, swinging from a loss of £770m in the first half of 2020. The British bank’s net lending rose by £2.2bn to £362.7bn in the six months to 30 June, while UK and RBSI retail and commercial businesses pushed lending to [...]
Government tells workplaces to plan for 25 per cent absence rates amid soaring Covid-19 cases January 2, 2022 Downing Street has asked ministers to develop robust contingency plans for workplace absences amid soaring Covid-19 cases.