Standard Chartered’s share price rises as Asia-focused bank raises £3.3bn in rights issue December 11, 2015 Standard Chartered has raised £3.3bn through a rights issue of new stock, as part of ongoing efforts to bolster the bank's bottom line. Under new chief executive Bill Winters, the Asia-focused lender set out its plans to shore up the struggling firm last month. Other measures include reducing the global bank's headcount by 15,000. Today StanChart [...]
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn scheduled to attend controversial Stop the War coalition Christmas dinner December 11, 2015 Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is planning to attend a Christmas dinner fundraiser for Stop the War coalition, a move which has attracted much controversy even from within his own party. Corbyn is billed as a "special guest" for an event, which will be held tonight at EV Restaurant at 6:30pm. Other guests will include campaigner [...]
Fosun Group shares halted after reports chief executive and founder Guo Guangchang goes missing December 11, 2015 Shares in China's largest privately own conglomerate Fosun Group were suspended today amid reports its billionaire founder and chief executive, Guo Guangchang, was missing. Guangchang, one of China's wealthiest men, has reportedly been unreachable since noon on Thursday, according to a report by Caixin, which cited unnamed sources. The news hit stocks in China, with the benchmark [...]
Crown Estate sitting on £800m of vacant London properties December 11, 2015 The Crown Estate is sitting on over £800m worth of empty properties in London alone, a City A.M. investigation has revealed, exposing the scale of the developer’s property footprint in the capital. The monarchy’s portfolio of property and land includes 312 vacant properties in the Greater London area, according to a Freedom of Information request, [...]
Property, Taylor Wimpey and the US dollar: Here are some of the best investments of 2015 December 11, 2015 Investing is always a bit of gamble, creating both winners and losers. So what did this year's winners invest in? There are no prizes for guessing property continued to provide investors with a sizeable return throughout 2015. Demand continued to pull away from supply at a dizzying rate. However, growth in London's Luxury market slowed slightly. Anyone who was lucky [...]
Conservative GLA member Richard Tracey wants to cut the Knowledge test for black taxi drivers by two-thirds December 11, 2015 The black taxi industry has questioned new proposals from Conservative London Assembly member Richard Tracey to eliminate barriers to entry for taxi drivers. In a report out today, Tracey recommends that the industry implement eight for changes in order to “compete with increasingly popular app-based private hire firms such as Uber”, including reducing the entry [...]
How’s the hangover? Tesco launches hangover stations for all your post-office party needs December 11, 2015 While PRs at Buchanan and Lansons are already dealing with the hangovers from their Christmas parties this month, last night was one of the busiest evenings for corporate dos in the Square Mile this season. This can only mean one thing: a very hungover workforce on Friday. Tesco is giving London's financial district a helping hand [...]
UK house prices: The most expensive streets in Britain are concentrated in Kensington and Chelsea – but each region has million-pound addresses (apart from Wales) December 11, 2015 Property price growth might be slowing in London, but when it comes to the top of the pile there is one borough within the capital that is still dominating. The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea continues to reign as being home to the largest number of Britain's most expensive streets to buy a property on – in [...]
Mindfulness techniques: Give yourself a competitive advantage with these simple exercises to keep on top of work December 11, 2015 Can you recall the last time you found yourself fully focused on a task for an extended period of time, or enjoyed a dinner with a friend without checking your phone frequently? In both our work and personal lives, our minds are under siege. Our ability to be present and focused with our tasks [...]
Anglo American is on track to join Lonmin and other struggling miners in the FTSE’s 90 per cent club December 11, 2015 Anglo American could be the next miner to join the FTSE's 90 per cent club, as the ongoing commodities rout takes its toll. The 90 per cent club is the one company nobody wants to join: made up of members of the FTSE all share who have lost more than 90 per cent of their value over the [...]