Got £40m? You could buy Liverpool’s iconic Liver Building October 17, 2016 Liverpool's Royal Liver Building is up for sale and is expected to attract buyers offering more than £40m for the landmark and its Liver Birds. The Grade I listed property is being sold by Royal London Mutual Insurance Society. It is the first time it has been on the market since it was first opened in [...]
House prices likely to be flat this year, but could fall by five per cent, according to UBS August 22, 2016 House prices are expected to stay flat until the end of 2016, and in the worst case scenario could fall by five per cent, analysts have predicted. The forecast comes from UBS Wealth Management, who have re-set their expectations for house prices due to the EU referendum. Read more: House prices are being cut by nearly [...]
How Dublin is quietly winning over financial hearts in the Brexit battle December 12, 2016 Ever since June’s surprise vote to leave the EU, London’s crown as a financial leader in Europe has been under increasing amounts of pressure. The German financial capital of Frankfurt has so far proven a powerful contender, with senior ministers reporting an increase in firms applying for licences and top politicians for the region being [...]
ZappiStore’s Stephen Phillips explains how he got through his first VC raise December 13, 2016 Stephen Phillips may have worked in market research for most of his career, but now he’s swimming against the tide. “Market research is full of smart people who care about understanding human behaviour, but profit margins are slim and processes are very intensive.” At a recent Leap 100 roundtable, Phillips explained how his firm ZappiStore [...]
Citigroup plans to relocate 10 per cent of UK roles if the UK can’t secure passporting October 19, 2016 US bank Citigroup would relocate almost 1,000 jobs outside of the UK if the government is unable to secure passporting for financial services. The bank, which has 9,000 staff in the UK, has told MPs that failure to secure passporting would see it move the roles. Citi has major locations in Dublin, Paris, Frankfurt and [...]
City bosses torn over Article 50 decision November 6, 2016 Senior City figures are struggling with mixed emotions following last week's Article 50 decision. Business leaders feel the High Court ruling, which decided parliament must be consulted before Prime Minister Theresa May can trigger Article 50, will generate yet more uncertainty in the wake of June's referendum result. However, there is also a sense of relief [...]
A big year, but it won’t Trump 2016’s shocks January 6, 2017 2016's events made fools of most pundits, and looking back at my column exactly a year ago, I fared little better. True, I correctly said that Santander UK would re-engage in an effort to buy Royal Bank of Scotland's Williams & Glyn unit, but I was well wide of the mark arguing that the FTSE-100 [...]
David Davis puts the government on collision course with the House of Lords over Brexit approval September 13, 2016 Brexit secretary David Davis has put the government on collision course with the House of Lords after slapping down demands from a committee of peers for a parliamentary vote on Brexit. The House of Lords constitutional committee today warned that the government should not trigger Britain's departure from the EU without “explicit parliamentary approval”. The Lords [...]
Leave the buy to let market alone, Britain needs more landlords September 6, 2016 Twenty years since buy to let took off, landlords are now a crucial part of Britain’s housing ecosystem. The private rented sector, accounting for around one in five properties, provides much-needed homes for those people who are not ready to buy or do not want to purchase a property. However, the sector sometimes comes in for stick, [...]
Sports software company Zwift secures bumper investment from London private equity house November 17, 2016 A software company promising to turn indoor sport on its head announced a $27m (£22m) investment from a London-based private equity house. Zwift, which currently focuses on creating an outdoor virtual reality for indoor cycling, said the cash boost would give them the "powder" to take the business to the next level. Gaming private equity specialist Novator Partners provided the [...]