UBS Group to stand trial in France facing accusations of assisting clients in avoiding tax March 20, 2017 UBS Group will stand trial in France facing accusations of assisting clients in avoiding tax. According to judicial sources, UBS may face a fine as high as $5.3bn (£4.3bn) amid allegations that it assisted clients throughout Europe in tax avoidance. In 2014, UBS settled a similar case in Germany for an estimated €300m (£260m). Shares in the [...]
Google’s top European boss Matt Brittin has apologised to its advertising clients over extremist content March 20, 2017 The European boss of under fire tech company Google has apologised to clients over its failure to stop adverts appearing next to extremist content. "I think we can do better," said Matt Brittin on the morning that Marks and Spencer pulled its ads from YouTube. It follows a weekend when several other advertisers put a [...]
Matalan expands abroad with shops in Malta March 20, 2017 Matalan is expanding abroad with the opening of two new stores in Malta. The retailer currently has 227 stores in the UK, and the two stores in Malta add to Matalan's international portfolio, which comprises 23 stores. The new outlets at The Strand, Sliema and Zabbar Road, Fgura, will create jobs for around 60 staff. Matalan [...]
Sterling drops against the dollar and the euro after Theresa May confirms Article 50 trigger date as 29 March March 20, 2017 The pound has pared earlier gains against both the dollar and the euro, after the trigger date for Brexit negotiations was confirmed this morning. Sterling was up against the dollar, hitting around $1.2431, and the euro, at €1.1546, in earlier trading, but has since declined. At pixel time, the pound was at $1.2383 and €1.152 [...]
Openreach is hiring 1,500 trainee engineers and trialling a new virtual reality experience March 20, 2017 Openreach is set to expand its workforce with 1,500 new trainee engineers hired over eight months who will work to extend the UK's fibre broadband network and improve customer service. The broadband provider will seek recruits from across Britain to fill new, full-time and permanent roles. Openreach will initially take on 119 recruits in April, followed by around 60 new [...]
Aberdeen Asset Management and Standard Life set out co-chief executive plans for “team players” Martin Gilbert and Keith Skeoch March 20, 2017 Aberdeen Asset Management and Standard Life have set out a plan for how their chief executives will both lead a merged company. After the £11bn merger was announced earlier this month, there had been City concerns about how, and whether, the co-chief exec structure could work in practice. They said today that Standard Life’s Keith Skeoch [...]
Travelodge is building a huge flagship site in London in addition to 15 new locations across the UK March 20, 2017 Travelodge is building its largest ever hotel in London to act as a flagship site for the City. The budget hotel chain's new build will create nearly 400 rooms in the heart of central London, and chief executive Peter Gowers called it a "milestone" for the company's growth. It is expected to open in 2018 on Middlesex Street near the Gherkin. Travelodge [...]
Major work on the Westminster Bridge cycle lane revamp will cause travel disruption from next week until 2018 March 20, 2017 Work starts next week to develop two cycle lanes on Westminster Bridge that will cause nearly a year of disturbance, though Transport for London (TfL) has pledged to "minimise disruption". The bridge will become the fourth Thames crossing to get segregated bike lanes, and the south-side junction will be remodelled to make it easier to cross [...]
Chris Hohn’s Children’s Investment Fund has stepped up its bid to end the €8.5bn Safran-Zodiac deal March 20, 2017 Sir Chris Hohn’s activist hedge fund has stepped up its campaign to halt an €8.5bn (£7.4bn) takeover. And now, it’s getting personal. The Children’s Investment (TCI) Fund has written to the board members of Safran, the aircraft engine maker that has agreed to buy plane-seat maker Zodiac, threatening to sue them personally if the deal goes [...]
Shareholder uprising: Santander, UFJ, Sumitomo and a number of other banks are at risk March 20, 2017 A number of banks have been marked as likely targets of a shareholder uprising, including UFJ, Sumitomo and Santander. More than half, or 58 per cent, of banks are located in countries facing potential governance shifts, according to new research by MSCI. Of those, 17 per cent, or nearly one in five, are at risk of [...]