Competition and Markets Authority launches probe into bond market November 18, 2018 The UK’s competition watchdog has launched an investigation into a suspected financial services cartel in the bond market. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said on Friday that it had launched a probe into alleged anti-competitive activity under Chapter One of the Competition Act 1998, which addresses price fixing and attempts to control markets. The [...]
DEBATE: Will the new recommendations from the CMA help rebuild trust in the audit sector? December 19, 2018 Will the new recommendations from the CMA help rebuild trust in the audit sector? Michael Izza, chief executive of ICAEW, says YES. The proposals from the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), alongside the Kingman Review, are the kind of bold intervention in audit that we have been calling for. Breaking up the larger firms was unlikely [...]
Competition watchdog gives clearance for CME’s purchase of NEX Group October 31, 2018 The UK's competition watchdog has approved the $5.5bn (£4.31bn) acquisition of London-based financial exchange group Nex by US derivatives marketplace CME. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) announced today it will not refer the merger for an in-depth investigation, after it had launched an inquiry in mid-September. CME's share price edged 0.8 per cent higher following [...]
Metro Bank tops customer service survey as challenger bank grows in popularity February 15, 2019 Metro Bank has topped an industry-wide customer service survey despite battling an accounting error, which has hit shares in recent weeks. The challenger bank knocked First Direct off the top spot in a Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) survey based on whether customers at the UK’s 16 largest current account providers would recommend their bank to friends [...]
Consumers could face higher prices after Paypal’s $2.2bn iZettle merger, watchdog warns November 26, 2018 Paypal’s $2.2bn (£1.7bn) takeover of mobile payment company iZettle could drive up prices for customers, the UK competition watchdog has said. The merger between the technology giant and the Swedish startup could also result in a lower quality of service, found the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which published its decision today. If Paypal hadn't launched a [...]
KPMG faces tribunal for its work for mattress firm Silentnight November 22, 2018 Audit firm KPMG and one of its partners face a tribunal over work for mattress firm Silentnight, the accountancy watchdog said today. The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) today delivered a formal complaint against the firm and restructuring partner David Costley-Wood. The FRC alleged that KPMG and Costley-Wood acted for Silentnight “in circumstances where their professional judgment [...]
CMA must investigate the online advertising market, government report states February 11, 2019 The online advertising market must face a probe by the competition watchdog amid concerns tech giants are putting the future of quality journalism at risk, a major government report has found. In its findings published today, the Cairncross Review called on the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to investigate the online advertising market to ensure [...]
Viagogo forced to overhaul ticket-selling practice by competition watchdog November 27, 2018 Ticket reseller Viagogo was today forced to “overhaul” the way it does business by the UK’s competition watchdog. In a landmark legal victory the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has secured a court order that will force Viagogo to tell customers the specific seat that they will get and whether there is a risk of [...]
Aisle be damned: The knives are out for big UK grocers January 9, 2019 Aldi and Lidl’s tills jingled all the way in December – handing them their highest-ever combined market share for the festive season, data from Kantar Worldpanel showed this week. All the major supermarkets lost market share in the 12 weeks to 30 December as Aldi’s sales jumped 10.4 per cent while Lidl’s were up 9.4 [...]
Audit sector faces huge shake-up as new reports make radical recommendations December 18, 2018 The stage has been set for a radical shake-up of the UK’s audit sector, following the release of two highly-anticipated reports. Britain’s audit watchdog, the Financial Reporting Council (FRC), should be scrapped and replaced with a new statutory body, Sir John Kingman’s review of the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has said. Meanwhile, the Competition and Markets [...]