Global corporate profits expected to fall eight per cent after record quarter August 25, 2021 Global corporate profits are set to fall for the first time in 18 months after a record second quarter, as a rise in the Delta variant has increased labour costs while squeezing supply chains, according to calculations by Reuters. Although huge stimulus packages helped to underpin economic recoveries while the easing of pandemic restrictions resulted [...]
FCA says it cannot supervise crypto exchange Binance effectively August 25, 2021 UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has admitted that it is “not capable” of effectively supervising Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange by trade volume in a statement published today. In a supervisory note the watchdog today reiterated its concerns over Binance’s products, which allow consumers to take supercharged bets, and added that the crypto exchange [...]
Return to office delayed for unvaccinated Credit Suisse staff in US August 25, 2021 Credit Suisse has told its unvaccinated US employees to continue to work from home until mid-October while vaccinated staff can return to the office from September, according to reports. The Swiss lender postponed the date when all of its US staff would be required to return to working from the office to 18 October, according [...]
Deloitte mandates vaccinations for staff in US offices August 25, 2021 Auditing giant Deloitte has told staff coming into its US offices from October, that they must be vaccinated against Covid-19, according to reports. Chief executive officer of Deloitte US, Joe Ucuzoglu, told staff in an email that from 11 October they would be required to reveal their vaccination status on a secure company website, according [...]
Lawyers urge UK government to save Afghan judges and artists August 24, 2021 City law firm Bates Wells has urged the Home Office to urgently help lawyers, academics and activists in Afghanistan, as the crisis in the country continues. The firm called on the government to take on board recommendations made in a joint letter by the Immigration Law Practitioners Association (ILPA) and the Afghanistan and Central Asian [...]
Exclusive: The City’s IPO women on ‘the male-dominated, testosterone-driven culture’ August 24, 2021 When an investor attending a presentation at the RAF club asked Cath O’Neill if she could take his coat, she was bemused. A short while later the same investor apologised profusely, having realized he had mistaken the only female CEO for a member of the waiting staff. O’Neil, who was by then accustomed to being [...]
Roger Federer-backed shoemaker files IPO in US August 24, 2021 On, a shoemaking company backed by tennis star Roger Federer, has filed for an initial public offering in New York, according to widespread reports. The Swiss shoemaker was, according to reports, valued at around $2bn after its last funding round. According to Reuters, On could pursue a valuation between $4bn to $6bn in its IPO. [...]
Pfizer to buy blood cancer drugmaker for $2.3bn August 23, 2021 Pfizer has announced it will buy all the shares of Trillium Therapeutics, an oncology biotech, for $2.3bn (£1.7bn), as the pharmaceutical invests in blood cancer therapies. The US drugmaker, which acquired a $25m stake in the Canadian oncology biotech last year, has agreed to purchase the remaining shares at $18.50 per share, representing a 203.8 [...]
McKinsey wins govt contract worth up to £3m: fights off competition from EY, Bain and Boston Consulting August 23, 2021 McKinsey & Company has won a contract worth up to £3m to consult the government on digital, data and technology services ahead of the annual spending review, according to reports. The firm fought off competition from EY, Bain and Boston Consulting Group, according to reports, which suggest that the contract, valued at £53,571 per day, [...]
Global anti-money laundering fines surge as regulators dole out tougher penalties August 23, 2021 Global anti-money laundering (AML) fines at banks and financial services firms soared to $2.2bn (£1.6bn) last year, fives times higher than in 2019, as regulators have stuck to tougher lines on the industry, according to reports. In its latest review Kroll, a governance and risk consultancy, found that watchdogs levied almost $1bn of AML fines in [...]