Plenty to digest for Domino’s Pizza investors August 9, 2019 | City Talk By Graeme Evans from interactive investor. UK trading is robust, but shares in Domino’s Pizza have been pegged back by operational issues. A see-saw year for Domino’s Pizza (LSE:DOM) shares was summed up when interim results highlighted a series of major challenges still facing the fast-food chain. The most serious looking is the ongoing stand-off with some of the group’s [...]
No, a four-day week won’t miraculously cure the workplace of stress August 9, 2019 Despite mooting plans to trial a four-day working week, research foundation the Wellcome Trust then did a complete U-turn on its proposal, following a review which found that the initiative could put extra pressure on some of its workforce. The news caught my eye because it confirmed what I already knew: while I wholeheartedly support [...]
Fintech giant Robinhood to launch commission-free stock trading service in UK August 8, 2019 Commission-free stock trading giant Robinhood is bringing its fintech platform to the UK after receiving the go-ahead from the UK’s financial regulator, it said today. The US startup, which is valued in the billions of dollars, will have to contend with rivals Revolut, Freetrade and Etoro in the UK space after the Financial Conduct Authority [...]
A food chain to get your teeth into August 8, 2019 | City Talk By Rodney Hobson from interactive investor. McDonald’s is spending money on developing personalised apps after upgrading its burger beef. It made its name by being cheap and cheerful but food chain McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) has long had a keen eye for innovation and for enhancing the quality of its ingredients, both of which generate welcome publicity. The successful formula is still [...]
Profit surges at Arrow Global but assets under management shrink August 8, 2019 Arrow Global has reported a huge increase in pre-tax profit but a dip in assets under management, and the debt-purchase specialist has announced a £20m cost-cutting programme. The figures Profit before tax for the first half of the year surged 203.7 per cent to £32.5m, a significant increase on the £10.7m seen in the same [...]
New business down at Hargreaves Lansdown as Woodford scandal bites August 8, 2019 Hargreaves Lansdown has seen a drop in net new business as the impact of the Neil Woodford saga on the investment provider begins to become clear, but revenues and assets under administration still rose. The numbers Hargreaves Lansdown reported a four per cent drop in net new business for the year ending 30 June, which [...]
Credit providers must learn to embrace new technology August 8, 2019 Personal finance has a legacy problem. Until now, those who weren’t familiar with its inner workings have never truly understood financial products and services. A combination of technical jargon and a lack of clarity concerning the impact that certain decisions might have on a person’s credit rating has often left consumers very confused about exactly [...]
Banks, don’t forget about the human touch August 8, 2019 Technology is transforming how we all live our lives. This is true in every part of the country and in every sector, and banking is no different. But the challenge for banks is to harness the possibilities of rapidly-evolving technology for the benefit of our customers. New banking tech affects how we live our lives, [...]
Dominic Cummings is behind Number 10’s new startup-mindset August 8, 2019 “What we want to hear is their conquer the world strategy,” said Scott Kupor, managing partner of American venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz. Kupor was talking about wannabe entrepreneurs knocking on the company’s Sand Hill Road door in California and looking to become the next Twitter, Lyft, or Airbnb. If Boris Johnson’s right-hand man Dominic [...]
Shares crash as short seller Muddy Waters savages Burford Capital August 7, 2019 Litigation finance firm Burford Capital has come under attack from short seller Muddy Waters, which has accused Burford of “egregiously misrepresenting” returns. In a report out this morning, Muddy Waters confirmed that it now holds a short position on Burford, which it describes as “a poor business masquerading as a great one”. Shares in the [...]