Aberdeen is back in the FTSE 100 but is Interactive Investor holding it up? August 12, 2026 Five years ago former Aberdeen chief executive Stephen Bird made what would prove to be a disastrous choice when he chose to rebrand the investment manager abrdn. The decision was widely mocked across the Square Mile – including earning the odd jibe in these pages. Some have called Bird’s decision the beginning of his downfall [...]
The European fintech American dream is being called into question August 12, 2026 A double US banking application blow has called into question the fintech dream of landing on Wall Street. In this week’s column, Samuel Norman takes a look at the expansion roadmap for Europe’s top fintechs as well as the latest response to the booming profits in UK banks half-year reports. Denied, denied, withdrawn. That is [...]
Plus500 splashes cash on investors after US expansion bears fruit August 10, 2026 Plus500 has kicked off another round of bumper returns to shareholders after delivering its highest customer income in five years following expansion into the US market. The FTSE 250 fintech recorded revenue of $462.9m for the first half of the year, up 12 per cent year-on-year. Meanwhile customer income, which measures revenue generated directly from [...]
Hargreaves Lansdown orders staff back to office August 9, 2026 The UK’s largest DIY investment site is ordering employees back to the office from the start of next year. Hargreaves Lansdown will order its staff into the workplace for three days a week, shortly after the firm moves into its new Bristol office. The wealth manager, which was acquired by buyout firms including CVC Capital [...]
Quilter toasts record inflows as financial advice push pays off August 6, 2026 Quilter has posted record net inflows as the wealth management firm toasts the success of capturing customers seeking financial advice. Total assets under administration and management (AUMA) jumped 25 per cent to £157.4bn in the first half of the year. The hike was driven by a 32 per cent increase in core net inflows to [...]
IHT pension scramble shows ‘no sign of slowing down’, says Royal London boss August 5, 2026 The mass scramble among UK pension savers to avoid being pulled into the inheritance tax net shows “no sign of slowing down”, as the policy shakeup creeps closer. From April 2027, pensions will be included in the scope of inheritance tax (IHT), meaning unused funds and death benefits will count towards the value of a [...]
Royal London hits assets record amid pension push August 5, 2026 Royal London recorded a new record high for assets under management, as the group was buoyed by resilient market activity and an influx of pension wealth. Assets under management (AUM) climbed to £212bn, up from £199bn at the end of the last financial year, driven by positive market movements and investors taking the “Iran war [...]
As it happened: Oil prices tumble as Bessent says US-Iran deal imminent; miner stocks rally August 4, 2026 Welcome back to the City AM FTSE 100 liveblog. The price of oil tumbled on Tuesday afternoon after a senior Trump ally said that a deal over control of the Strait of Hormuz could be agreed with Iran in the coming days. The price of Brent crude – the international benchmark for oil – tumbled [...]
Astrazeneca share price tumbles on $400bn megamerger talks August 3, 2026 Astrazeneca’s share price slumped sharply on Monday as investors baulked at a potential $400bn megamerger with US rival Bristol Myers Squibb. Shares in the UK drugmaker slid six per cent in early trading to 11,866p after the Financial Times reported it has been holding talks regarding a potential tie-up with the US group in recent [...]
Goldman Sachs criticises £1.45m paternity payout July 31, 2026 Goldman Sachs has criticised a ruling to hand one of its former senior executives a £1.45m payout over his dismissal while on paternity leave. Jonathan Reeves, who served as the deputy global head of the Wall Street bank’s compliance ‘control room’ in London, was dismissed from his job in 2022 when he was due to [...]