Mishcon de Reya spent £12m on shelved London IPO August 16, 2022 Mishcon de Reya spent almost £12m in readying itself to list on the London Stock Exchange, before shelving its initial public offering (IPO) in June. In a Companies House filing, the law firm said it spend more than £11.7m on preparing for its IPO before calling the public float off for the “foreseeable future due [...]
The Sage Group snaps up Seattle software developer Lockstep August 16, 2022 THE SAGE Group, the UK’s largest tech company, has acquired Seattle software developer Lockstep as part of its ongoing efforts to capitalise on the fast-paced growth of cloud computing. The takeover deal will see Sage – a major developer of accounting, HR, and payroll technology – snap up accounting software company Lockstep for an undisclosed sum. [...]
Bulk annuity transactions set to hit record levels in 2022 August 15, 2022 The UK market for bulk annuity transactions is on track to hit record levels this year, pensions experts have said. The value of all UK bulk purchase annuities deals is already up by 50 per cent compared to last year, and could hit historic levels by the end of the year. The increase in [...]
PwC to face Hong Kong probe over Evergrande audit August 15, 2022 Hong Kong’s audit watchdog has launched an investigation into PwC over its audit of embattled Chinese real estate developer Evergrande. The city-state’s Financial Reporting Council (FRC) today said it had opened an investigation into the Big Four accountancy firm’s audit of the heavily-indebted property firm’s 2020 results. The probe comes after PwC signed off [...]
Freshfields calls lawyers back into the office for at least three days a week August 15, 2022 Magic Circle law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer has upped the minimum number of days it expects its lawyers to come to the office from two-and-a-half to three days a week. Lawyers working at the Magic Circle firm’s London and Manchester businesses will now be expected to work from the office for at least three [...]
Goldman Sachs slashes London office pay as dealmaking lull hits profits August 15, 2022 The world’s biggest investment banks have slashed the sums of money they spend on paying their staff, following a sharp decline in dealmaking. Goldman Sachs cut the sums of money it spends on paying staff in its in London offices by 59 per cent over the first half of 2022, the investment bank’s financial results [...]
Abrdn’s Asian Income Fund loses 6.9 per cent of value as APAC markets suffer August 15, 2022 Asset management giant Abrdn said the value of the assets controlled by its Asia Income Fund plunged 6.9 per cent over the first half of 2022 as markets were rocked by a combination of Covid lockdowns and the ripples of war in Ukraine. In its half yearly report today, the firm said net asset value [...]
Tatton Asset Management bolsters investments offering with £7m 8AM tie-up August 15, 2022 Asset manager Tatton announced it had completed its tie-up with fund manager 8AM Global for £7m today, as it looks to bolster its investment offering and capitalise on four months of steady inflows this year. London-headquartered Tatton, which manages around £11.2bn, said it had acquired a 50 per cent stake in 8AM through a deal [...]
Phoenix hikes dividend as pensions deals bolster insurer’s business August 15, 2022 Phoenix Group today upped its dividend after posting “record” financial results for the first half of 2022. The London insurer hiked its dividend by three per cent to heights of 24.8p a share after a series of pensions deals bolstered Phoenix’s revenues. The pensions deals, signed off in the first half of last year, saw [...]
Big Four accountancy firms capture larger share of UK legal market August 15, 2022 Major corporations are snubbing traditional law firms in increasingly going to consultancies and accounting firms for legal advice, according to new research from Thomson Reuters. The Big Four accounting firms – PwC, KPMG, EY, and Deloitte – are driving growth in the alternative legal services provider (ASLP) sector, as UK corporates increasingly turn to them [...]