One million 50p coins featuring wrong Brexit date to be melted down November 19, 2019 One million 50p coins minted to mark Britain’s planned departure from the European Union on 31 October are headed for the furnace, the Treasury has confirmed. Chancellor Sajid Javid had ordered the production of three million commemorative coins engraved with the planned departure date, but the Royal Mint paused production in late October after Prime [...]
Google Stadia responds to complaints over lag on gaming platform November 19, 2019 Google’s Stadia has responded to complaints that lag is affecting services on the new cloud-based game streaming platform. Early adopters have complained about latency – delays between when they press a button and that action being carried out in-game – on the new service. Read more: Google announces Stadia game streaming platform Google vice president [...]
Softbank in talks to take over KPMG’s private members’ club November 19, 2019 Softbank is reportedly in talks to take over the KPMG’s controversial private members’ club in Mayfair, after regulators expressed concerns the auditor was giving memberships to its clients as perks. KPMG put the five-storey club, called Number Twenty, on the market in September as part of a cost-cutting drive but stepped up efforts to offload [...]
New York State Attorney General reportedly investigating Wework November 19, 2019 Embattled office space firm Wework is reportedly being investigated by the New York State Attorney General (NYAG). The issues NYAG is examining include whether Wework founder and former chief executive Adam Neumann indulged in self-dealing to enrich himself, Reuters reported. Read more: Wework losses ballooned to $1.3bn in quarter before failed float The investigation comes [...]
Storage firm Big Yellow’s profit jumps on higher revaluation gain November 19, 2019 Big Yellow’s pre-tax profit jumped over 50 per cent in the first half thanks to a higher revaluation gain, as the self storage firm reported increased revenue despite the “less than helpful” economic and political environment. The figures For the six months ending 30 September Big Yellow’s profit before tax increased 56 per cent to [...]
John McDonnell: ‘No one needs to be a billionaire’ November 19, 2019 Shadow chancellor John McDonnell is set to take aim at billionaires today, describing their wealth as “obscene” as Labour releases research showing almost a third of Britain’s billionaires have donated money to the Tories. McDonnell is expected to say he wants to “rewrite the rules of our economy” in a speech in central London later [...]
AO World closes loss-making operations in the Netherlands November 19, 2019 Online white goods retailer AO World has announced the closure of its business in the Netherlands, as the group reported an operating loss of £10.6m for the first half. Chief executive John Roberts said the closure of the retailer’s Dutch operations was part of its “relentless focus to accelerate profitability in Europe” and would allow [...]
Listed law firm DWF beats Brexit gloom to grow revenue November 18, 2019 Listed law firm DWF managed to boost its revenues in the first half despite persistent political uncertainty, it said today. In a trading statement to the City, DWF said it had increased group revenues by at least 10 per cent in the six months to the end of October. Read more: Listed law firm DWF [...]
EU to extend temporary access to UK clearing houses beyond March November 15, 2019 Brussels is planning to extend access to London-based clearing houses for EU clients beyond next March in a bid to prevent financial turmoil if Britain leaves the bloc without a deal. A temporary permit that treats UK clearing houses as EU firms post-Brexit is due to expire at the end of March, raising the prospect [...]
Extinction Rebellion activists target Blackrock in Amazon deforestation protest November 15, 2019 Extinction Rebellion protesters have targeted the London headquarters of Blackrock, protesting what they described as the role of the world’s largest asset manager in the destruction of the Amazon. Activists from the climate campaigning group dumped wood ash – waste collected from pizza ovens and stoves – in front of the entrance to Blackrock’s offices [...]