Sharks circle Kier Group despite construction giant’s ‘future-proofing’ plans November 19, 2018 Five funds have raised their bets against Kier Group so far this month, as traders predict the construction giant will be the next big outsourcer to have its shares tumble. Funds including Blackrock and George Soros-backed SFM UK have raised their short positions in Kier recently, even after the company unveiled a plan in late September [...]
Black Friday footfall to dip as retailers extend discounting into the weekend November 19, 2018 Footfall during this year’s Black Friday is expected to slide, with fewer consumers feeling the urgency to shop on Britain’s high streets as retailers plan to extend the frenzied day of discounting into the weekend. Research out yesterday from analytics firm ShopperTrak is predicting the volume of shoppers on the high street will be 6.5 per [...]
Facebook donates £4.5m to fund local journalists in the UK in fight against fake news November 19, 2018 Facebook will donate £4.5m to support roughly 80 trainee journalists in newsrooms across the UK in a bid to plug the gap caused by the decline of local media. The social media firm said it has partnered with the National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ) and a range of British publishers to help [...]
Troubled cake chain Patisserie Valerie given until January to agree loan with main lenders November 19, 2018 The owner of troubled cafe chain Patisserie Valerie has said it has won more time to strike a loan agreement with its principal lenders that will allow it to cover existing debt. Patisserie Holdings originally had 45 days from 12 October to agree a loan facility with lenders, but that time period has now been extended to [...]
Hackers jailed over £77m Talk Talk cyber attack that affected thousands of customers November 19, 2018 Two hackers have been jailed for their part in a £77m cyber attack on Talk Talk that compromised the financial details of thousands of customers. Matthew Hanley, 23, from Tamworth, was jailed at the Old Bailey this afternoon for 12 months after admitting charges relating to the data breach in 2015. Connor Allsopp, 21, also from [...]
Equinix to spend £90m on Slough data centre to support the City’s increasing reliance on data November 19, 2018 Technology infrastructure giant Equinix is building a £90m flagship data centre to support increased reliance on data by City firms, the company said today. The US firm said the new and expanded facilities will support growing volumes of data, including increased traffic in the City. The project, dubbed LD7, is due to be completed in early 2019. The new facility [...]
Telecom Italia appoints Luigi Gubitosi as new chief executive after ‘Whatsapp ousting’ November 19, 2018 Telecom Italia has named a former Merrill Lynch banker as its new chief executive, less than a week after it reportedly ousted its former boss via a Whatsapp message. The board of Italy’s largest telecoms firm selected Luigi Gubitosi, a veteran manager who has held senior roles at companies such as Fiat and Wind Telecom, during [...]
Housebuilder Weston sees profits soar as it plans £28m expansion November 19, 2018 Housebuilder and office provider Weston has reported a huge increase in revenue and pre-tax profits as the developer cashes in on rising demand for new homes. The volume housebuilder, which operates in London and the south east, said its pre-tax profits increased over 50 per cent year on year to £35m. The group’s revenue was up [...]
Europe’s real estate investors dominate central London commercial market November 19, 2018 European buyers dominated Central London’s commercial property market in the third quarter of 2018, according to a new Knight Frank survey which underlines investor appetite from the continent. Accounting for almost 40 per cent of Central London’s market share by price, buyers from across Europe are on course to exceed their 10-year average levels of [...]
Danske Bank whistleblower says he was offered hush money November 19, 2018 The whistleblower at the heart of a widening money-laundering scandal centred on Danske Bank has claimed the Danish bank tried to pay him to keep silent, and implicated a major European lender, reported to be Deutsche Bank, and two US banks in having handled suspect funds. Howard Wilkinson – head of Danske Bank’s trading unit [...]