Feeling the burden of social care and the NHS? Crowdfunding can save us February 16, 2017 Earlier this month, a crowfunding platform launched solely to raise money to create adult-only games. This week, teachers from schools in Portland, Oregon turned to crowdfunding to help close gaps in funding for classroom equipment. And last week, we ran an interview on this page with Julia Salasky, the founder and chief executive of CrowdJustice. Her [...]
Millennials: The unlikely group supporting Britain’s SMEs February 16, 2017 The Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) is growing with spectacular speed. Since its inception, £14.2bn has been invested through the scheme according to HMRC statistics, providing much needed capital to Britain’s entrepreneurial businesses. As well as providing opportunities for companies to gain early stage funding, EIS also provides many benefits for investors, and our research shows that [...]
Watch your step: Shareholder activism is on the rise and UK companies are among the most vulnerable February 15, 2017 UK companies beware: activist investors may be coming for you. New global research out today has identified the UK as one of the most at-risk countries for shareholder activism. Outside of the US, the dominant market for activism, an FTI Consulting activism tracker found 342 global campaigns last year, compared with 70 in 2010. Read [...]
Schroders and Henderson bosses take on Investment Association board positions February 15, 2017 The bosses of Schroders and Henderson are taking on new positions at fund management body the Investment Association. Schroders’ group chief executive Peter Harrison will be chair of the organisation’s board, while Henderson’s chief executive Andrew Formica will be his deputy. Read more: UK investor confidence hits highest level since Brexit vote They will take [...]
UK investors are at their most confident since the Brexit vote, despite continued uncertainty February 15, 2017 UK investors are becoming increasingly confident despite continued uncertainty around Brexit, new figures show. Investor sentiment has risen to its highest level since before the EU referendum, according to a Lloyds Bank survey of more than 4,000 adults. Overall, Lloyds reported net investor sentiment was at 6.1 per cent in February, up from 5.7 per cent in [...]
OAP (Old And Partying): UK pensioners have higher average incomes than their working age children, and spend more on having fun February 15, 2017 For the silver generation, this truly is a golden age. Two reports released in the last week indicate that pensioners have never had it better. The first, Tilney’s “The Cost of Tomorrow”, debunks the myth that supposedly frivolous twenty-somethings spend more on having fun than retirees, either in absolute terms or as a percentage of their [...]
Almost half of financial advisers think Mifid II will hurt the industry, but a similar proportion aren’t sure what it will mean for them February 14, 2017 Almost half of financial advisers are worried a tougher set of rules for the sector, which are due to come into force in less than a year, will hurt their industry, but a similar proportion also still don't know what it will mean for their own business. Financial firms will have to comply with the [...]
Xafinity wants to take on the big boys with its London IPO February 14, 2017 The £190m float of a mid-tier actuarial and consulting firm will help it break the stranglehold of the largest three market players, its boss said today. Xafinity announced plans earlier this morning for a London listing and intends to make an official admission to the exchange on Thursday. Paul Cuff, the company's co-chief executive, told City A.M. he hopes the [...]
As the Co-Op Bank goes on sale, is now the time to buy UK banks? February 14, 2017 It wasn't hard to spot the irony when Paul Flowers, chairman of the avowedly ethical Co-Operative Bank and a methodist minister, was arrested for drug possession in 2013. In the same year, the mutual Co-operative Group ceded control of the ailing lender to its bondholders, after a massive £1.5bn hole was discovered in its balance [...]
Older people must shoulder their share of government spending cuts February 14, 2017 Given general improvements in technology and prosperity, younger generations should, in theory, always be better off than their parents. But with pensioner households now earning more than their working age equivalents, according to a new report from the Resolution Foundation, this can no longer be taken for granted. It is of course good news that older [...]