British Gas owner Centrica names industry veteran Charles Berry as new chair October 31, 2018 21 Centrica, the parent company of British Gas, has appointed industry veteran Charles Berry as its next chairman. Berry is currently chairman of international engineering group Weir and will take up his new position on February, replacing Rick Haythornthwaite, who has held the role for six years and announced earlier this year that he intended [...]
£350 for your thoughts: Nutmeg enters financial advice market with budget offering October 31, 2018 Online wealth manager Nutmeg revealed plans today to shake up the financial advice market with a low price fixed-fee model. The advice service, which will be provided over the phone, will offer a free initial consultation, followed by a £350 charge should the customer want recommendations. The move is a shift away from the common so-called [...]
Chancellor Philip Hammond’s Autumn Budget contained tricks and treats for your personal finances October 31, 2018 The move of this year’s Autumn Budget to Monday this week rather than its traditional Wednesday slot was ostensibly to give MPs more time to debate the chancellor’s proposals before the House of Commons rises for recess on 6 November. But presumably Philip Hammond also hoped to avoid some Halloween-themed headlines, which he himself alluded to [...]
Next shares drop as online shopping boost masks high street malaise October 31, 2018 Clothing and home products retailer Next managed to balance out falling high street sales with its growing online business, its third quarter trading update showed today. Store sales for the quarter were down eight per cent year on year and 6.3 per cent in the year to date compared with 2017. But online sales shot [...]
City Moves for 31 October – who’s switching jobs at Mayer Brown, Meggitt and IOE&IT? October 30, 2018 Who’s switching jobs today? Mayer Brown Global law firm Mayer Brown announced that Ashley McDermott has joined the firm’s banking and finance practice in London as a partner. He will advise on a range of lending transactions, particularly those involving emerging markets. Ashley’s practice is focused on export, trade and multilateral financing, especially in the [...]
Fintech star Monzo joins unicorn ranks with £85m funding round October 30, 2018 Digital banking startup Monzo will today announce the close of a fresh fundraising round at £85m, led by new US investors General Catalyst and Accel as the fintech firm prepares to leap across the pond. Existing investors Passion Capital, Thrive Capital, Goodwater, Orange Digital Ventures and Stripe also participated in the round. The news takes [...]
Proxy adviser Pirc tells shareholders to oppose Go-Ahead’s remuneration policy update October 30, 2018 PROXY adviser Pensions and Investment Research Consultants (Pirc) has recommended that shareholders oppose Thameslink owner Go-Ahead's payment policy over fears that director pay outs could be excessive. Under the proposed changes to the bus and train company’s variable remuneration scheme the “maximum potential opportunity” could be 300 per cent of chief executive David Brown’s base [...]
Coinbase lands fresh valuation at over $8bn October 30, 2018 Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase today revealed it had raised an additional $300m (£236m) of investment in a series E round led by Tiger Global Management. The move takes the company’s valuation to over $8bn, at a significant leap from its last valuation of $1.6bn last summer. The round was supported by Y Combinator Continuity, Wellington Management, Andreessen [...]
Hey PRs, no one in August is counting down to Christmas and quit the obnoxious intros October 30, 2018 Billy from a TV production company writes: “Hello Elena, I know you simply can’t wait to kick off the festive season and are counting days until Christmas.” Top marks for presumptuousness, Billy. You “know” that I “can’t wait”? I can, actually, because I don’t celebrate Christmas. You also suggest that I am “counting days”. Are [...]
DEBATE: As we head towards a cashless society, is there any point to a commemorative Brexit coin? October 30, 2018 As we head towards a cashless society, is there any point to a commemorative Brexit coin? Callum Price, events manager at the Centre for Policy Studies, says YES. There is no doubt that we are heading towards an increasingly cashless society, but we are far away from the point at which we will no longer [...]
