HSBC and China Investment Corporation in talks over £1bn fund to invest in UK November 15, 2018 Global bank HSBC and the China Investment Corporation are in talks to create a £1bn fund which will be used to invest in British companies that have links with China. Private equity firm Charterhouse Capital Partners is in talks with both parties to manage the fund. HSBC said in a statement: “China Investment Corporation, HSBC and [...]
Monzo needs a dose of Spotify boldness to go from UK unicorn to Silicon Valley titan November 15, 2018 The end of October saw startup bank Monzo confirmed as the latest British unicorn, hitting a valuation of $1.2bn three years after launching. This isn’t London’s first unicorn by any means, with Deliveroo and Funding Circle leading the way. But so far none have come close to the achieving the global domination or $100bn valuations [...]
Six reasons you should care about share buybacks November 15, 2018 | City Talk Warren Buffett, the billionaire investor, recently hit the headlines with the announcement that he plans to spend almost $1 billion buying back shares in his investment company, Berkshire Hathaway. This practice has been increasingly common over recent years, with major implications. Buybacks have fundamentally altered the investment landscape over recent years. However, this is not [...]
Asset managers back Big Four audit firms in competition watchdog consultation November 15, 2018 Investment management firms have called on the competition watchdog to ensure the quality of audit is not affected as it probes the dominance of the so-called Big Four firms. In a response to the Competition and Markets Authority Standard Life said the division of the dominant audit firms – PwC, Deloitte, KPMG and EY – [...]
The probate debate: How will you be affected by the changes to the unpopular death tax? November 15, 2018 While most of us will be familiar with – or at least have heard of – inheritance tax (IHT), probate fees are a little-known extra cost that many families are forced to confront when their loved ones pass away. Both IHT and probate fees are often referred to as the “death tax” – although the [...]
US midterm elections: Is gridlock good? November 14, 2018 | City Talk Further tax cuts unlikely but will Trump strike a deal on trade? Keith Wade, Chief Economist, says: “The midterm elections restored some faith in opinion polls with the Democrats taking the House of Representatives and the Republicans holding the Senate. Conventional wisdom has it that a gridlocked Congress is good for markets as it prevents [...]
Forget going solo: Why it pays to find a co-founder November 14, 2018 Britain has always worn its entrepreneurial spirit proudly on its sleeve. It was Adam Smith (not, in fact Napoleon) who coined the term “a nation of shopkeepers” to describe the British in The Wealth of Nations back in 1776. Today, calling us a nation of entrepreneurs is far more accurate. New research from Octopus reveals that [...]
Transferwise repackages its business banking with a debit card November 14, 2018 Fintech unicorn Transferwise is today relaunching its business banking effort to include a debit card, integration with accounting platform Xero and an open access developer channel. The newly-revised business product will provide a Transferwise Business debit card for spending both online and in-store in 45 currencies, in addition to its previous offering of local bank details [...]
City Moves for 14 November – who’s switching jobs at KPMG, Iwoca and NCP? November 14, 2018 Who’s on the move today? KPMG KPMG has hired Jennifer Cooper as International Tax Director for the firm’s growing international tax team in London. Jennifer previously worked at professional services firm EY. In recent years she was based in both the UK and Silicon Valley, specialising in helping US-headquartered multinationals understand the changing UK tax [...]
Profits crash again as ‘frail’ McCarthy & Stone outlines plan to cut costs November 13, 2018 Profits collapsed at retirement housebuilder McCarthy & Stone today as it posted its full year results. Profit before tax fell 37 per cent year on year to £58.1m, down from £92.1m in 2017, as the housebuilder blamed a rise in building costs, rising operating costs, as well as extra marketing to promote its latest homes. [...]
