Neelie Kroes joins Salesforce board: Fromer EU competition chief hot on tech regualtion just joined a tech company March 22, 2016 Neelie Kroes, the woman who spent more than a decade overseeing competition in the EU, has joined the board of US-based global tech firm Salesforce. With nicknames such as Nickel Neelie or Steely Neelie, Kroes handled antitrust cases involving many of the world's largest telecoms and tech firms. “She is an amazing and respected leader who has done extraordinary work [...]
Brussels cats return to Twitter after twin attacks in Belgian city leave at least 34 dead, more than 100 wounded March 22, 2016 Brussels' residents are once again finding solace against terrorism in cat pictures. The Belgian city was the scene of a lockdown in November as authorities attempted to trace suspects behind the Paris attacks, which killed 130 people. At the time, residents were asked not to tweet pictures that might tip off suspects – prompting a wave of cat [...]
Sports Direct’s share price flops after founder Mike Ashley admits the company is “in trouble” and blames MPs for a storm of negative publicity March 22, 2016 The share price of controversial sportswear retailer Sports Direct has tumbled after billionaire boss Mike Ashley admitted in a rare interview the company is "in trouble", and "not trading very well". Speaking to The Times, Ashley blamed MPs for creating a storm of negativity around the retailer, and accused them of “abuse of parliamentary process” by requesting he attend [...]
London, Paris, New York and Washington step up security in wake of Brussels attacks at Zaventem Airport and Maalbeek Metro station March 22, 2016 Police services in London, New York and Washington have stepped up security measures today, in the wake of two apparently coordinated attacks in Brussels this morning. The suicide attacks – at Zaventem Airport and Maalbeek Metro station – are thought to have killed at least 26 people and wounded dozens more, some seriously. Around 200 flights [...]
Every one per cent of growth in the UK’s legal sector adds another £379m and 8,000 jobs to the economy, finds report March 22, 2016 Legal eagles are adding a substantial chunk to the UK's bottom line, as the legal sector is now valued at over £25bn, a report out today has found. The study published today by the Law Society discovered that every one per cent of growth in the UK's legal services sector adds an additional £379m to the economy and [...]
GVC Holdings appoint new chief product officer after acquisition of online sports betting firm bwin in February March 22, 2016 Sports betting and online gaming firm GVC Holdings has created a new chief product officer role following its acquisition of bwin.party digital entertainment. Liron Snir has been appointed GVC's first chief product officer, who will oversee product management and user experience on the company's digital betting platforms. Bwin.party, a B2B and B2C sports betting brand and owner [...]
Nearly three in four people say chancellor George Osborne is not up to the job of Prime Minister after Budget March 22, 2016 Nearly three in four people think chancellor George Osborne is not up to the job of Prime Minister, according to new YouGov figures out today. In just the latest post-Budget blow for the chancellor, YouGov found that only eight per cent of people think Osborne would be a good fit for replacing Prime Minister David Cameron. The proportion [...]
888 Holdings’ 2015 operational profits halve due to levies but operational successes boost share price March 22, 2016 The share price of online betting and gaming provider 888 Holdings rose as its announced its full-year financial results for 2015 today, emphasising operational successes despite a halving of its operational profit. The figures Operating profit for 888 Holdings, the owner of 888.com, halved from $80m (£55.5m) in 2014 to $40.8m (£28.3m) in 2015. The company saw gaming duties [...]
Moody’s: Conduct litigation charges for Lloyds, HSBC, Barclays, RBS and Santander UK rose 40 per cent to £15bn last year March 22, 2016 Legal fees and remediation costs for conduct issues will continue to pose downside risks for Britain's biggest banks, Moody's Investors Service is warning today. In a new report out this morning, the credit rating giant said conduct charges are on the rise – and will continue to constrain profitability at the UK's five largest lenders for years [...]