Vodafone gets its wires crossed with customers as it becomes the most complained about March 30, 2016 Vodafone has become the UK's most complained about mobile phone provider following a surge of complaints in the final months of 2015. The UK telecoms watchdog Ofcom has said it recorded 32 complaints for every 100,000 of Vodafone's pay-monthly subscribers in the last quarter of 2015. This was a major surge, more than double the amount of [...]
Bitcoin undervalued by $200 according to new report from Needham & Company March 30, 2016 The leading cryptocurrency bitcoin has been undervalued by around $200, according to a new report by investment bank and asset managing firm Needham & Company. The digital currency should have a price of $655, rather than the current level of around $412 that the currency is trading at, Needham & Company argued. The firm argued bitcoin "has a value [...]
William Hill ads banned by Advertising Standards Authority for being “misleading” and “unclear” March 30, 2016 The Advertising Standards Agency (ASA) has banned William Hill from repeating two "misleading" and "unclear" promotions it ran in December. The promotions were marketed as "risk free" and stated in their terms and conditions that customers would receive money back if they placed bets of £5 or £10 on "£5 Risk Free with Family Guy… Play [...]
Byron avoids a grilling, serves up healthy profits for its “proper hamburgers” in 2015 March 30, 2016 Still pursuing its goal to turn the UK into a nation of "proper hamburger" lovers, Byron saw healthy growth in sales and expanded into eight new venues (mostly outside of London) in 2015. The figures Profit after tax at the posh burger chain remained flat at £4.4m, while turnover jumped by 25 per cent from £55.2m to [...]
Brazil central government posts primary budget deficit March 29, 2016 Brazil's central government has posted a primary budget deficit of 25.1bn reais (around £4.bn) in February, almost 12bn reais (over £2bn) higher than expected. A Reuters consensus estimate of nine economists had expected the deficit of the government account, which covers the central bank, federal ministries and social security, to reach 13.8bn reais. The February deficit was the [...]
PMDB party pulls out of Dilma Rousseff’s governing coalition in latest turn in Brazil’s political crisis March 29, 2016 The largest party in Brazil's ruling coalition, the PMDB, has voted to leave the government in an "immediate exit" and said it will pull its members from president Dilma Rousseff's cabinet. The centrist Brazilian Democratic Movement Party made the decision to withdraw the six remaining ministers in Rousseff's cabinet at a leadership meeting today. The PMDB's ministers, including the country's [...]
Influential shareholder group PIRC calls into question Schlumberger’s ability to cover proposed dividend payout ahead of oil firm’s annual meeting March 29, 2016 The influential shareholder group PIRC has called into question Schlumberger's ability to cover a proposed dividend payout ahead of the oil firm's annual meeting. In an alert today PIRC said that Schlumberger's proposed cash dividend of $2 per ordinary share "is not covered by earnings", and recommended that shareholders cast an "oppose" vote on the group's financial statements and [...]
Volkswagen emissions scandal: US consumer watchdog Federal Trade Commission sues VW over “deceptive” clean diesel claims March 29, 2016 The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has become the latest body to sue Volkswagen (VW) over its "deceptive" diesel emissions claims. The consumer watchdog announced today that it was starting proceedings against the US arm of the German car manufacturer and wants it to be ordered to compensate the 550,000 customers who bought or leased a [...]
Coinkite drops bitcoin wallet to refocus on cryptocurrency hardware March 29, 2016 Bitcoin startup Coinkite has announced it will phase out its popular online wallet system over the course of 30 days and its team will refocus on enterprise hardware products. "We are winding down the web wallet part of Coinkite so that our team can focus on a number of new products that are more decentralized and embodied [...]