Staveley ditches West End law firm Fladgate for US heavyweights Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan in Barclays dispute October 2, 2017 PCP Capital Partners, the investment firm founded by Amanda Staveley, has ditched West End law firm Fladgate as its advisers in its £1.2bn court battle against Barclays. It has instead appointed Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, a prestigious US-based firm which specialises in business litigation and arbitration. Staveley changed representation due to the high stakes [...]
It’s all fun and games, until Labour crashes the economy September 27, 2017 Labour is “war-gaming” crashing the economy. That’s not the exaggerated spin of the hysterical mainstream media – it’s the words of shadow chancellor John McDonnell himself. McDonnell told Momentum activists at a Labour conference fringe event on Monday night that “people want to know we’re ready” for the chaos that could hit if the party [...]
Transport for London pledges no compulsory redundancies in London Overground overhaul of ticket offices as strike threat looms | City A.M. September 18, 2017 Transport for London (TfL) and Arriva Rail London (ARL) said today that “there will not be a need for compulsory redundancies” in plans to overhaul the London Overground, as unions warned ticket office closures could lead to industrial action. ARL will begin meeting with staff and unions to discuss proposals to improve customer service, including [...]
China bans initial coin offerings (ICOs) sending bitcoin price tumbling as central bank rules them illegal September 4, 2017 Is the ICO bubble about to burst? In China, perhaps. The country’s authorities have ruled that initial coin offerings are illegal and banning them from taking place. The Peoples’s Bank of China (PBC), the country’s central bank, and other regulating authorities have said companies raising cash via a cryptocurrency or digital token will not be [...]
What happens to the markets if America goes to war? August 31, 2017 The stock market hates uncertainty, and there is plenty of uncertainty with respect to the tensions over the latest round of North Korean missile tests. This post, originally published 13 September 2013, focused on the violence in the Middle East, specifically Syria, and the potential that the United States could enter the conflict and [...]
Re-identification of personal data: The common crime you’ve never heard of August 24, 2017 There was a sense of inevitability to the Data Protection Bill announced by the UK government this month. What especially caught my eye was the new criminal offence: “of intentionally or recklessly re-identifying individuals from anonymised or pseudonymised data” punishable by an unlimited fine. It’s a welcome move that shines a spotlight on a relatively [...]
Connection Capital raises £8m from private investors for Volkswagen and Lloyds Bank litigation funder Therium July 19, 2017 Connection Capital, a specialist syndicator of investment funds from private investors, has raised £8m for litigation funder Therium. This largest ever fundraise from Connection Capital, and its third commitment to Therium, will bring the total invested by the firm in litigation funding to £16m. Read more: Woodford-backed litigation funder Burford Capital stands to profit from [...]
Connection Capital raises £8m from private investors for Volkswagen and Lloyds Bank litigation funder Therium July 19, 2017 Connection Capital, a specialist syndicator of investment funds from private investors, has raised £8m for litigation funder Therium. This largest ever fundraise from Connection Capital, and its third commitment to Therium, will bring the total invested by the firm in litigation funding to £16m. Read more: Woodford-backed litigation funder Burford Capital stands to profit from [...]
How geopolitics trumps economics July 7, 2017 Earlier this week I attended the "Athens Seminar", an economic and political round table discussion that has been hosted annually since 1979. I thought it would be of interest to share some of the main takeaways, as they help understand the current environment. Since the global financial crisis, economic and financial issues have dominated this [...]
Mastercard and Visa see UK legal claims from high street names mount over interchange fees June 25, 2017 MASTERCARD and Visa are facing legal claims that could top £1bn as a raft of high street names pool their resources in a battle with the credit card giants over fees. At the start of this month, litigation claims were launched by 27 high-street retailers, supermarkets, pubs and bookmakers over “multilateral interchange fees”, or charges [...]