Nationwide profits slip for second year running after planned mortgage retreat May 22, 2018 Nationwide, Britain’s biggest building society, today announced a slump in mortgage lending amid concerns of a “fiercely competitive market”. Net lending fell from £8.8bn to £5.8bn in the year to 4 April. Annual profit slipped seven per cent to £977m A planned retreat from the buy-to-let mortgage market was the driving force behind falling lending, [...]
Thameslink passengers complain of further disruption despite third new timetable in two months July 16, 2018 Thameslink has said it is aware of "a number of disruptions" across its services this morning, despite the introduction of another timetable. The service is running on its third timetable in two months, as it tries to reduce the disruption caused by new running times introduced on 20 May. But the rail operator has told [...]
City firms increase hiring and technology investment plans in spite of Brexit uncertainty July 2, 2018 Financial services firms increased hiring and investment in the second quarter in spite of continued nerves over the Brexit process, new figures show. Employment across financial services rose at the fastest pace in a year, with a balance of 24 per cent saying they had increased hiring in the second quarter, according to the survey [...]
Aston Martin lines up seven top banks to manage £4bn float April 17, 2018 Aston Martin has appointed seven banks to act as bookrunners on its £4bn stock market flotation, according to reports today. Rumours of the luxury car brand floating in London surfaced in February, though any final decision would come down to the company’s Italian private equity owner Investindustrial. Today, Sky News reported that shareholders had lined [...]
PwC UK chairman resists calls for Big Four breakup as firm posts record revenues September 17, 2018 The chairman of PricewaterhouseCoopers UK said the Big Four accountant has learnt from its mistakes and improved processes, after it raised revenues despite settling two regulatory investigations in the past year. Kevin Ellis, PwC’s UK chairman and senior partner, told City A.M. he stands by the company’s opposition to breaking up the Big Four accountancy firms, [...]
PwC UK chairman resists calls for Big Four breakup as firm posts record revenues September 17, 2018 The chairman of PricewaterhouseCoopers UK said the Big Four accountant has learnt from its mistakes and improved processes, after it raised revenues despite settling two regulatory investigations in the past year. Kevin Ellis, PwC’s UK chairman and senior partner, told City A.M. he stands by the company’s opposition to breaking up the Big Four accountancy firms, [...]
Lloyds Banking Group to unveil £1bn share buyback and boost bonus payouts to £415m February 20, 2018 Lloyds Banking Group will unveil plans for a £1bn share buyback tomorrow along with boosted bonus payouts to staff. According to Sky News, Lloyds will reveal the news with its annual results tomorrow and a new three-year strategy. The bank is also expected to say that it will pay around £415m in bonuses to staff [...]
London City Airport chief Robert Sinclair “increasingly confident” Brexit deal will be done April 10, 2018 London City Airport chief executive Robert Sinclair is “increasingly confident” a deal with the EU will be done by 2019, as the airport launched a joint campaign with the Department for International Trade (DIT) to encourage British businesses to sell overseas. Sinclair told City A.M. that while his predecessor, Declan Collier, was “right to raise [...]
World leaders push back against Saudi account of journalist’s death October 21, 2018 The backlash against Saudi Arabia over the death of Jamal Khashoggi stepped up again yesterday, with world leaders uniting to condemn the Gulf kingdom’s claims that the journalist and critic died in a “fist fight” at its consulate in Istanbul. German chancellor Angela Merkel described Khashoggi’s killing as “horrific”, saying events “still haven’t been cleared [...]
London and the West Midlands can be an unstoppable force together September 11, 2018 Over a year since taking on the role of West Midlands mayor, we have achieved a lot. The wider region has experienced the largest increase in jobs in the UK, Coventry will be the country’s City of Culture in 2021, and Birmingham has secured the Commonwealth Games in 2022 – to name a few successes. [...]