JP Morgan draws the line on staff voicemail to cut costs June 3, 2015 Many of JP Morgan's employees will no longer have voicemail once a new cost-cutting plan is rolled out. The bank is getting rid of the service, which costs $10 (£6.5) per month per person, because it says many of its staff simply don't need it. “We realized that hardly anyone uses voicemail anymore…we’re [...]
Sophos IPO: London’s biggest ever tech float is coming in July, Apax Partners reveals June 3, 2015 London is set for its biggest ever tech IPO after Sophos announced its intention to float on the London Stock Exchange with an expected target valuation of more than $1bn. The security software company has eschewed the trend of London's tech firms crossing the pond in favour of a Nasdaq listing and expects to make its [...]
AstraZeneca chief executive questions UK’s commitment to treating cancer June 3, 2015 AstraZeneca chief executive Pascal Soriot has warned that the UK is lagging behind in cancer care innovation, after the government's drugs approval body rejected a new ovarian cancer drug already used in France and Germany as being too expensive. Read more: Why only Scottish patients are getting the best new drugs on the NHS “How can [...]
Dixons Carphone ups full-year profit forecast after smashing expectation with fourth quarter sales June 3, 2015 The figures Sales at Dixons Carphone were up nine per cent in the fourth quarter to 2 May, higher than the four per cent analysts had predicted. The mobile and electronics retailer has upped its profit outlook for the year as a result, saying it will be "slightly above" its previous guidance of £355m to £375m. [...]
Peter Long named Royal Mail chairman succeeding Donald Brydon June 3, 2015 Royal Mail has named Peter Long as chairman, succeeding Donald Brydon who announced he was stepping down at the start of the year. The co-chief executive of travel company TUI, Long will take over from Brydon, who has been with the postal firm for six years, in September. "Long brings with him a proven track record in [...]
Stock exchange reshuffle puts Inmarsat in FTSE 100 June 2, 2015 Troubled banknote printer De La Rue is likely to tumble out of the FTSE 250 less than a week after it posted a £20m decline in profits during the last financial year. The London Stock Exchange (LSE) yesterday announced several potential changes to its indices, with supermarket group Morrisons expected to move from the [...]
LondonMetric embarks on £26m shopping spree at Marks & Spencer June 2, 2015 LondonMetric said yesterday that it has snapped up a portfolio of five M&S Simply Food stores for £26m, as it boosts its exposure to the booming convenience market. The FTSE 250 retail and distribution warehouse speciality said the acquisitions come on top of a recent letting of 11,300 sq ft to M&S for 20 years [...]
HSBC hires two new female non exec directors, Irene Lee and Pauline van der Meer Mohr June 2, 2015 Embattled banking giant HSBC appointed a pair of new experienced business names to its board yesterday, in a move that could bolster its governance, after a series of bruising reputational scandals. Irene Lee is an expert in Asia-Pacific finance, and has served on the boards of finance firms including ING Australia and Hang Seng Bank. [...]
Synergy suffers from unhealthy pre-tax profits June 2, 2015 UK-BASED health outsourcing firm Synergy recorded slowing pre-tax profits for the year ending 29 March. The company recorded revenue growth of 7.5 per cent year-on-year to £408.8m, up from £380.5m a year earlier, although pre-tax profits inched up by just 1.6 per cent during the period. Last week, investors were left disappointed after a planned [...]
Can a currency save an economy? What the UK example teaches us June 2, 2015 Much has been said of global currency wars in the past few years. If there has been such a war, then arguably the UK fired the opening shot with a trade-weighted depreciation in the value of the pound of nearly 30 per cent between the summer of 2007 and the end of 2008. This was [...]