Finance sector upbeat as firms see profit jump March 29, 2015 Financial services firms are full of optimism following three months of surging business volumes and higher profits, a new set of survey data shows today. However, the survey was undertaken prior to the introduction of a bank levy that was announced in the recent Budget. The survey was also blighted by a decline in employment [...]
Mid-sized firms raise £5.2bn on Aim to boost investment plans March 29, 2015 Growing businesses raised £5.2bn in cash calls on the Alternative Investment Market (Aim) last year, the highest level since 2010, according to figures out today from Capita Asset Services. The rise in fundraisings is continuing into 2015 – in February alone, there were 42 cash calls, a rise of 24 per cent on the year. [...]
Stock market flotations grind to a halt ahead of General Election March 29, 2015 The expected flood of initial public offerings (IPOs) racing to debut on the stock market ahead of the election has barely materialised, analysts at EY said today. Market commentators had expected a rush of floating firms as sellers tried to cash out before the uncertainty of the General Election, combined with any potential coalition negotiations [...]
Who you know, not what you know: Social contacts still key to a start in career March 29, 2015 Getting on to the career ladder is easy – if you are well connected and are willing and able to do about seven internships, a report suggests today. Young people today need, on average, to have seven work placements to get on to the career ladder, when in the past one would have normally been [...]
International consortium buys up London South Bank scheme for £308m March 29, 2015 A consortium of British and international investors has bought up a £1bn office and residential development on London’s South Bank for £308m. UK’s Native Land, Singaporean sovereign wealth fund Temasek, Hotel Properties, run by the Singaporean family behind British handbag-maker Mulberry and Malaysia’s Amcorp Properties, have agreed to buy the site from Carlyle, the private [...]
Hackers force British Airways to freeze-frequent flyer accounts March 29, 2015 Tens of thousands of British Airways frequent-flyer accounts have been hacked, meaning executive club flyers will be unable to use their points. The carrier said no personal information had been viewed or stolen on the small proportion of its customers who were affected, whose accounts have now been frozen while the issue has been resolved. [...]
Banks stress as the Bank of England prepares to unveil tougher tests March 29, 2015 Britain's banks are bracing themselves for a batch of tougher stress tests to be unveiled by the Bank of England tomorrow, with the emphasis expected to shift away from domestic concerns and onto global risks. The tests take place annually, and focus on the potential impact of a different type of hypothetical crash each time. Last [...]
Apple chief executive Tim Cook plans to give most of his money to charity March 28, 2015 Tim Cook, chief executive of Apple, says he wants to donate most of his personal fortune to charity before he dies. He told Fortune Magazine he plans to give away huge sums to philantropic causes, but only after he has provided for the college education of his 10-year-old nephew. A private university education in the [...]
High Court ruling on taximeters could spell the end for Uber as we know it March 28, 2015 An application by Transport for London (TfL) to the High Court could put the brakes on Uber services in London, and it all comes down to taximeters. These are the small boxes with which taxi drivers calculate the fare over the course of a journey, and the law states that in London they can only [...]
General Election 2015: Was David Cameron right about zero hours contracts during Paxman clash? March 27, 2015 David Cameron faced a harsh grilling from Jeremy Paxman last night with the former Newsnight presenter kicking off a tough round of questioning on food banks and zero hours contracts. Paxman challenged the Prime Minister on how many of the jobs created during the coalition's time in office were zero hours contracts, to which Cameron [...]