HSBC and Santander must repay over £8m in overdraft fees November 29, 2019 HSBC and Santander must refund customers to the tune of millions of pounds after failing to text customers who fell into unarranged overdrafts. HSBC twice broke a legal requirement to text customers before charging them for falling into an overdraft and is refunding £8m to 115,754 customers. Read more: TSB branch closures: Which will close [...]
The CMA has officially launched a probe into the Sainsbury’s Asda merger August 23, 2018 The competition watchdog has officially launched an investigation into the proposed mega-merger between supermarkets Sainsbury's and Asda. Pricing, quality and the range of products at both businesses will come under scrutiny as the competition and markets authority (CMA) tries to determine if a tie-up will have a negative effect for UK consumers. The regulator will [...]
Dignity profit falls 30 per cent as fewer people die November 11, 2019 Dignity, the UK’s only listed funeral firm, saw its underlying operating profit slip 30 per cent for the year to date, driven by a significantly lower number of deaths. Profit fell from £68.6m in 2018 to £47.9m this year. Underlying revenue also fell eight per cent, from 244.2m in 2018 to 225.4m. Despite the fall [...]
CMA launches court action against ticket reselling site Viagogo August 31, 2018 The competition watchdog is taking ticket reselling site Viagogo to court after the company failed to make reforms to its business. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) began action against four secondary ticket sites last November, but Viagogo is the only one not to have offered formal commitments to overhaul its practices. Legal proceedings have now [...]
RBS and Santander rapped over PPI reminders August 23, 2019 Santander and the Ryal Bank of Scotland apologised to customers today as the UK’s competition watchdog scolded them for not properly reminding PPI customers they were able to cancel their plan. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said it will force the two banks to appoint independent auditors to scour through their payment protection insurance [...]
Government drops probe into Saudi investments in Evening Standard and Independent September 16, 2019 The government has decided not to pursue a probe into Saudi investments in the Evening Standard and the Independent, despite concerns they could harm freedom of expression. Culture secretary Nicky Morgan today said she will not appeal a court ruling that blocked the government from forcing a full public interest inquiry. Read more: Independent and [...]
Brydon review finds UK audit industry in need of ‘urgent reform’ December 18, 2019 The UK’s audit industry is in need of “urgent reform”, according to the findings of a year-long review into the sector. The review, which was led by Sir Donald Brydon, a former chair of the London Stock Exchange Group, calls for the creation of “a standalone and transparent audit profession” split off from the accounting [...]
DEBATE: As the Big Four firms continue to dominate audit, have government efforts so far to reform the market failed? October 30, 2019 As the Big Four firms continue to dominate audit, have government efforts so far to reform the market failed? David Herbinet, global head of audit at Mazars, says YES. The Financial Reporting Council’s latest figures show that, despite all efforts, the audit market is actually narrowing. A diverse market is vital for audit quality and [...]
Spotify to suspend political ads in 2020 December 28, 2019 Music streaming service Spotify has said it will pause selling political advertising in early 2020. The world’s most popular music subscription service, which according to latest figures has 141m users listen to its ad-supported platform, said the pause would include its original and exclusive podcasts. It comes as campaigns for the presidential election set for [...]
Gambling firm 888 Holdings pushes ahead with plans despite coronavirus crisis April 15, 2020 Gambling firm 888 Holdings will push ahead with its growth plans this year despite the uncertainty caused by the coronavirus pandemic, the company said as it published its full-year results. The figures Revenue was up four per cent to $560.3m last year but profit before tax fell from $108.7m to $45.3m. Adjusted earnings before interest, [...]