The digital door is always open for Estonia’s e-residents of the world July 26, 2019 There’s something strange about the apps on your mobile phone and desktop computer. Take a look now and see if you can spot what they all have in common. The apps we choose reflect the services that we most value in order to manage our lives, yet almost all of them were created by the [...]
DEBATE: Was the Aston Martin IPO a folly? July 26, 2019 Given the company’s troubles, was the Aston Martin IPO a folly? Neil Wilson, chief market analyst for Markets.com, says YES. Lowering sales guidance less than a year after listing is a crime that many investors would feel warrants some devious Bond-villain style punishment. Aston Martin has gone bust seven times. Investors should be wary of [...]
Lloyds’ away win piles pressure on Skeoch July 26, 2019 A score draw? For Standard Life Aberdeen, that’s probably an overly generous classified check after the final whistle on its £109bn fund management dispute with Lloyds Banking Group. It’s hard not to look at the result as anything other than a come-from-behind victory for Britain’s biggest high street lender instead. The £140m cash sum it [...]
Johnson’s critics will be confounded by the new PM’s liberalism July 26, 2019 There’s a good chance that things will go badly for Boris. He barely has a majority, his party is divided and MPs from across the house are priming their parliamentary grenades to thwart and disrupt him. On the other hand, it is at least possible that he gets a Brexit deal passed and triggers what [...]
Boris sings an uplifting tune but the mood music is more sinister July 26, 2019 Put aside for a moment the enormity of the challenges facing the new Prime Minister and ignore, briefly, the vulnerability of his government and the divisions over Brexit. Instead, permit yourself to enjoy the sight and sound of a leader who actually dares to exude optimism. Boris Johnson has pledged to sweep away the “doomsters [...]
Former banker Sajid Javid’s first job as chancellor? To stand up to Boris Johnson July 25, 2019 Analysts at Deutsche Bank triggered sighs across the City yesterday with an attempt to coin the term “Borisnomics”. The portmanteau, as clunky as the new Prime Minister’s debut speech on the steps of Downing Street, is unlikely to catch on – but whatever we call it (Bojonomics, Johnsonomics…) how should we judge Boris Johnson’s likely approach [...]
DEBATE: Could fintechs solve London’s dirty money problem? July 25, 2019 Could fintechs be the answer to solving London’s dirty money problem? Michael Harris, director of financial crime compliance and reputational risk at Lexis Nexis Risk Solutions, says YES. By their very nature, fintech firms are disruptive and have a reputation for driving change in their field. Why shouldn’t the fight against money laundering be led [...]
Tips for Boris Johnson and his new team at Number 10 July 25, 2019 When it comes to the transfer of power, the British political system is lightning fast. You must immediately move from the startup mentality of campaigning to the awesome responsibility of governing. Whether coming out of a leadership contest or a General Election, there is no transition period. Nothing can quite prepare any incoming Downing Street [...]
Africa is doing just fine, thank you July 25, 2019 If you only know Madagascar because of that animated penguins film, you’ve not been using the internet properly. But that is understandable, because the African island nation has faster internet speeds than you in the UK, France, or Canada. It has birthed a thriving call centre industry in a country that is also home to [...]
Churchill was the leader that Britain needed at the time – could Boris be the same? July 25, 2019 The new Prime Minister had never been short of confidence about his own abilities. On the day of his ascension to the highest office in the land, he wrote “I felt as though I were walking with destiny and that all my past life had been a preparation for this hour and for this trial”. [...]