Online property group Emoov to join forces with Tepilo and Urban in £100m merger May 30, 2018 Online real estate group Emoov today announced a £100m merger with digital property firm Tepilo and online letting agency Urban. The combination of the three proptech companies will create the second-largest online real estate agent in the UK behind industry leader Purplebricks. The merged business will be headed by Emoov CEO Russell Quirk, the company [...]
Italy’s populists will take advantage of this chaos for all it is worth May 29, 2018 As a spectator sport, Italian politics rarely disappoints. The spectacle of the radical, anti-establishment 5 Star Movement stitching together a plan for government with the far-right League has been gripping and alarming in equal measure. How would sweeping tax cuts sit alongside a massive expansion of welfare? How would markets react to a debt-laden economy [...]
Donald Tusk slaps down EU commissioner after Italy comments May 29, 2018 European Council President Donald Tusk has slapped down one of the bloc's commissioners for suggesting that Italian voters may be pressured into changing their minds by market movements. Markets across Europe were in flux today, with the so-called fear index the Vix up 17 per cent on the back of political uncertainty unfolding in Italy [...]
Could the office be staffed by chatbots? May 29, 2018 Whether checking insurance quotes, ordering concert tickets, or seeing if your favourite trainers are back in stock, almost all of us will have encountered a chatbot in our daily lives. Capable of providing fast access to information and offering pre- programmed responses to minimise misunderstanding in communication, businesses have found that chatbots have cut customer [...]
Former Barclays Euribor trader describes losing “a lot of money” in first trade May 29, 2018 A former Barclays trader who stands accused of rigging the European Interbank Offered Rate (Euribor) for commercial gain told a London court she feared losing her job when she lost "a lot of money" on her first trade. Danish national Sisse Bohart, 40, told Southwark crown court that despite being given a target of raising [...]
London airspace property developer Apex Housing hits new heights with £6.25m investment from the Business Growth Fund May 29, 2018 Apex Housing, a business which creates flats above London's rooftops, has today nabbed a £6.25m investment from the Business Growth Fund (BGF). Founded in 2008, Apex purchases unused "airspace" above residential, commercial and public building rooftops and converts the space into homes. It uses modular construction methods to build the properties in an offsite factory [...]
Standard Life Aberdeen’s share price falls as firm reveals plans to return £1.75bn to shareholders May 29, 2018 Standard Life Aberdeen's share price fell this morning after the firm revealed plans to return £1.75bn to its shareholders following the sale of its UK and European insurance business to Phoenix Group. The finance giant this morning announced plans to gift £1bn to shareholders via a B share scheme, in which new B shares will [...]
The City’s Pret employees celebrate £1,000 bonus after JAB Holdings takeover May 29, 2018 Pret A Manger employees in the City today celebrated news that they would be receiving a £1,000 bonus after the company announced it will be acquired by German conglomerate JAB Holdings. “I only just heard,” said Mohamed Naim, 19, who works at a store on Fenchurch Street. “I still can’t believe it. It’s a bit [...]
Financial Conduct Authority ups scrutiny on senior manager appointments May 29, 2018 The City watchdog increased its scrutiny of the appointment of senior managers at financial services firms last year as part of its efforts to tighten up its regulatory supervision, according to data to be published today. The number of vetting interviews by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) rose by a third in 2017 to reach [...]
Number of large department stores in England falls 25 per cent in less than a decade May 29, 2018 In a further sign of the ailing UK retail sector, new research has found that the number of large UK department stores in England has fallen by 25 per cent in less than a decade. According to peer-to-peer property lending platform Lendy, the number of large department stores, which it defines as multi-level stores that [...]