The City is braced for a hard Brexit – why aren’t MPs? December 11, 2018 Had things worked out differently we could have woken up this morning to news that MPs voted last night in favour of Theresa May's withdrawal agreement. The transition period was secured, talks would move on to the future trade deal and businesses would breath a mighty sigh of relief. Instead, we rise to find another [...]
Brussels to finally ease post-Brexit clearing fears with equivalence agreement December 11, 2018 Brussels is preparing to unveil concrete plans to grant EU financial institutions access to London's clearing houses in the event of a no deal Brexit, prompting relief in the City and among businesses across the continent. The draft proposals could be published as early as tomorrow. It comes after the Bank of England, trade bodies, and clearing [...]
UK fintech startup Weswap pulls the plug on 2018 London IPO plans December 11, 2018 Peer-to-peer currency exchange platform Weswap has scrapped plans to list on London’s Alternative Investment Market (Aim) this month, after investor interest fell flat. Sources told City A.M. that the initial public offering, which had been mooted for a December launch, had failed to garner sufficient attention in what was promised to be a relatively small [...]
Brent Crude price rises as protesters stop production at Libya field December 11, 2018 Oil ticked higher today as a protest at one of Libya’s biggest oil fields hit the country’s output. A local tribe demanding more development in their community shut down the 315,000 barrels-a-day El Sharara oilfield in the south west of the country. Plant authorities declared a so-called force majeure, saying they were unable to fulfil [...]
Eurozone budget plan still on the table despite ‘very deep split’ among EU members December 11, 2018 Proposals for a Eurozone budget are still on the table despite a “very deep split” among member states, the European Commission said today. After a fiery debate of the European Parliament today economic affairs commissioner Pierre Moscovici said the prospect of a consensus was “bleak” and the window of opportunity for reform was “slowly closing.” [...]
FTSE and sterling rebound from lows caused by Brexit deal vote delay December 11, 2018 The FTSE 100 has rebounded this morning after yesterday's decision to delay the Brexit deal vote sent the index tumbling. The blue chip index has risen 1.2 per cent this morning to 6,800 points – as high as it was before the vote was delayed – as markets began to stabilise after a tumultuous start [...]
Can Interserve clean up its mess, or is it destined for the same fate as its failed rival Carillion? December 11, 2018 It feels like we’ve been here before, doesn’t it? It was almost a year ago when outsourcing giant Carillion collapsed, and now there are some worrying signs that rival FTSE firm Interserve could wind up suffering the same fate, serving a huge blow to UK businesses and the livelihoods of its 75,000 employees. On Sunday [...]
May’s Brexit failure has hit the economy December 11, 2018 Tear your eyes away from Westminster for a moment, and consider Morgan McKinley’s London Employment Monitor. Today’s report is not good. Available financial services jobs in the capital in November were down four per cent month-on-month, and 39 per cent on the previous year. Job-seeker numbers are also down. This is particularly worrying as yesterday’s [...]
The government must resist micro-managing our EU exit December 10, 2018 Unlike many commentators, I believe that a no-deal Brexit still very possible. It is the default as the clock ticks, and parliament must vote for government-backed legislation to change path. For all the threats about a second referendum, the Conservatives would implode if they rowed back on delivering Brexit. And as regrettable as a no-deal [...]
EU urged to provide clarity over clearing as patience wears thin ahead of Brexit December 10, 2018 UK clearing houses and industry groups are growing increasingly impatient with the EU over the future of trillions of pounds worth of derivative contracts after Brexit. Trade groups have written to the European Commission “urgently requesting” legal certainty that EU-based firms will still be able to use London clearing houses in the event of a [...]