December’s deep freeze: Cost of living crisis leaves Aviva with a £50m bill for burst pipes and water tanks January 25, 2023 Aviva said last December’s freezing weather meant it had to pay out £50m to policyholders claiming for damage caused by burst pipes and water tanks. An Aviva spokesperson told City A.M. said soaring energy costs had led to more frozen pipes because households were more reluctance to turn on the heating, leading to more extremes [...]
Former Janus Henderson analyst charged in £1.5m insider trading case January 25, 2023 The UK’s financial watchdog has launched criminal proceedings against five individuals over claims they used insider information from an analyst at a top asset manager to illegally generate profits of £1.5m. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) claims Redinel Korfuzi, a former analyst at asset manager Janus Henderson, and his associates allegedly used confidential information from [...]
Gambling firm In Touch fined over £6m for failing to protect vulnerable customers and money laundering breaches January 25, 2023 In Touch Games has been fined £6.1m for social responsibility and money laundering failings by the Gambling Commission. The gambling firm, which operates 11 websites including bonusboss.co.uk, cashmo.co.uk, drslot.co.uk, jammymonkey.com and slotfactory.com, was charged over not having appropriate policies, procedures and controls in place and not sufficiently considering or implementing the regulator’s money laundering and [...]
Saga to launch new over-50s media brand to capitalise on UK’s ageing population January 24, 2023 Saga is set to launch a new over-50s media brand, the conglomerate’s chief executive told City A.M., as the company looks to capitalise on the UK’s ageing population. Saga, which sells travel, insurance, and financial services to over-50s, is seeking to exploit a “gap in the market” and build a “superbrand for older people” by [...]
UK’s ‘science superpower’ dreams at risk due to HMRC crackdown on R&D tax relief fraud January 24, 2023 The UK’s goal to become a ‘science superpower’ is at risk as an increasing number of British firms move their R&D activity abroad, due in part to HMRC’s crackdown on fraudulent tax relief claims, a new report says. More than two-thirds (69 per cent) of UK businesses moved R&D activity abroad last year, figures from [...]
With an average claim in excess of £50k, it really is time to see if you qualify for an R&D Tax rebate January 23, 2023 | Sponsored What are Research and development tax credits? Simply put R&D Tax Credits are a niche, but a lucrative part of the UK tax code that could bring your company significant tax relief. Most companies we speak to at SAS R&D don’t think that they will qualify for these payments with the common misconception amongst business [...]
Insurers falling short in modelling cyber and natural catastrophe risks, Bank of England warns January 23, 2023 The UK’s insurance regulator has called on insurers to bolster their cyber and natural catastrophe risk modelling capabilities in preparation for a period of “high volatility and uncertainty”. In a letter sent to UK insurance companies today, the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), which sits within the Bank of England, warned insurers models are continuing to [...]
UK consulting firms no longer filled with Russell Group uni grads, new research shows January 23, 2023 British consulting firms are no longer dominated by Russell Group university graduates, according to new research from the Management Consultancies Association (MCA). Instead, the proportion of graduates from Russell Group universities – a group of 24 of the UK’s “leading” research universities, including Oxford and Cambridge – working in consultancies has more than halved [...]
Private finance firms have fewer women leaders than listed rivals, new research shows January 23, 2023 Financial services companies that are structured as privately-owned partnerships have significantly fewer women in leadership positions than their publicly-listed rivals, new research shows. Fewer than one-sixth (15.1 per cent) of partners in privately-owned finance firms are women, according to research from employment law firm Fox & Partners. By comparison, women account for 43 per [...]
BP, Siemens and PepsiCo branded ‘hypocrites’ for donating to Ukraine while failing to fully exit Russia January 22, 2023 BP, Siemens and PepsiCo have all donated millions to Ukraine while at the same time failing to fully exit Russia, new research shows. The three multinationals have been branded “hypocrites” and sit alongside 13 other top firms that have both given aid to Ukraine while also retaining their links to the Russian Federation. The research [...]