High street banks plan to help Treasury offload £17bn of Bradford and Bingley loans March 1, 2016 Britain’s largest high street banks are planning to help the Treasury offload £17bn of Bradford and Bingley (B&B) loans. The proposal would see Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds, Royal Bank of Scotland, Nationwide and Santander guarantee around £17bn of financing to the purchasers of the loans. It emerged at the beginning of this year that a sizeable part [...]
This is how insurers can become part of the sharing economy July 13, 2016 If the general public was asked ‘what does the insurance industry do’, it’s unlikely the answer would be; ‘it supports entrepreneurial innovation and endeavour ’. But that’s precisely what insurers do and the exponential growth of the sharing economy has provided an interesting challenge for insurers in this role. Sharing enablers such as AirBnB, RideLink and Vrumi are [...]
Meet the firm which hopes to solve the late payment problem September 7, 2017 Most firms just aren’t ready for the tsunami of changes around working capital which will hit British businesses this year. This warning comes from Tony Duggan, chief executive of fintech firm Crossflow Payments, a company which acts like a cog between corporations, their suppliers, and funding providers – ensuring that suppliers don’t have to wait [...]
US President Donald Trump is one big step closer to signing his tax overhaul bill into law December 2, 2017 US President Donald Trump is a step closer to passing his sweeping tax overhaul after approval from the US Senate. The bill was passed by 51 to 49 following a flurry of last-minute amendments. Talks between the Senate and the House of Representatives are set to begin next week to create a single bill for [...]
Rarer than a unicorn? This venture capital firm just floated in London June 15, 2016 Draper Esprit, the European firm which has backed startups such as LoveFilm, Graze and Lyst has made its stock market debut in a rare move for a venture capital firm.. With a dual listing on Aim and Ireland's Enterprise Securities market (ESM), shares on London's junior market were up as much as four per cent on the [...]
Arsenal target Jamie Vardy set to delay decision on future until after Euro 2016 June 7, 2016 Striker Jamie Vardy looks set to adhere to the wishes of England manager Roy Hodgson and postpone any decision over his domestic future until after the European Championship. Arsenal triggered a £20m release clause in Vardy’s contract on Friday while the 29-year-old was expected to decide whether to join the Gunners or stay with Premier [...]
Football betting: Take classier Welsh to breach Northern Ireland’s sturdy defence June 23, 2016 Having claimed temporary bragging rights over neighbours England by topping Group B, I’m backing Wales to cause further hurt for fellow home nation Northern Ireland in their Euro 2016 knockout tie tomorrow. Wales have come on massively over the last five years and it’s no fluke that they are in the last 16 of a [...]
Brexit worries are dampening consumer confidence, says Marks and Spencer boss May 25, 2016 Consumer confidence has been hit by uncertainty over the EU referendum and has consequences for retailers, according to Marks & Spencer boss Steve Rowe. Speaking today after Marks & Spencer posted its latest results, the company's new chief executive said short term confidence has been knocked. “Customer confidence and optimism, particularly in the short-term, in the last few [...]
Ascential sells 11 B2B magazines including Drapers, Nursing Times and Construction News to Metropolis June 1, 2017 Business-to-business media company Ascential has announced the sale of 11 more magazines today. The FTSE 250-listed publisher has sold titles including fashion magazine Drapers, Nursing Times, Local Government Chronicle and Construction News to Metropolis International. Metropolis, which already owns Property Week, Packaging News, Laboratory News and UK Boarding Schools Guide, is paying £23.5m for the [...]
Neil Woodford has invested more cash in this tech startup May 11, 2016 Neil Woodford has increased his stake in Drayson Technologies, a UK startup specialising in wireless technology. The top fund manager's Patient Capital Trust is among investors to plough £8m into Drayson in a new round of funding, bringing the tech firms investment to date to £26m. Read more: This Woodford-backed estate agent is on course for triple-digit growth The [...]