Elior Champ Rugby deal may be good for clubs, but what’s the point? March 20, 2026 It is great to see Champ Rugby get its first sponsor in six years this week, in catering company Elior UK; it signals a shift in appetite for the second tier of English rugby. It will be a good marketing tool for clubs, whose matches are broadcast on streaming platform Clubber TV, and it solidifies [...]
CMA must act now to fix Britain’s broken cloud market March 20, 2026 The CMA correctly diagnosed the UK cloud market as broken and dysfunctional, so why isn’t it changing anything, writes Lord Clement-Jones.
Open banking is a growth engine Britain cannot ignore March 20, 2026 Open banking doesn't grab headlines like AI, but combining these technologies can deliver exponential benefits, writes John Glen MP.
Revolut poised to hit Natwest and Lloyds in deposit war March 20, 2026 Revolut’s long-awaited UK banking licence approval is set to trigger a “deposit war” that could hand a major blow to incumbent giants Natwest and Lloyds. The $75bn fintech juggernaut finally bagged its full-fat UK banking permit earlier this month after a four-year tussle with regulators. Analysts are expecting the move to send ripples across the [...]
Carabao Cup: Arsenal and Manchester City tailgaters to be deemed criminals March 20, 2026 Arsenal and Manchester City fans will be deemed criminals this weekend should they enter the Carabao Cup final without a football match ticket, the Home Office has announced. The move, introduced by crime and policing minister Sarah Jones, comes into force today and will cover all of football, and is part of a wider response [...]
Sluggish economy spooks small housebuilders March 20, 2026 Small and medium (SME) housebuilders are being put off from investing in new projects by the UK’s economy and housing market, according to a new report. As many as 70 per cent of SME building firms said current market conditions are reducing their appetite for starting new sites and a quarter expect to cut back [...]
Bank of England’s Bailey: Interest rate cuts not on the horizon March 19, 2026 The Bank of England’s Andrew Bailey has ruled out the prospect of any interest rate cuts in the near future, warning that the sustained conflict in the Middle East constitutes a major shock to energy supply that could leave long-term scars on the British economy. In an interview with LBC set to air on Thursday [...]
London IPO market may yet recover in 2026, Peel Hunt says March 19, 2026 The London IPO market could still see a revival before the end of the year, according to City broker Peel Hunt, as a number of blue chip firms wait patiently for geopolitical tensions to die down before firing the starting gun on their own floats. Brian Hanratty, head of equity capital markets at Peel Hunt, [...]
Bank of England rebuffs calls to speed up ‘shadow banking’ stress test March 19, 2026 The Bank of England has rejected calls to speed up its inaugural stress test of the private credit industry, despite growing fears that a downturn in so-called shadow banking may pose a systemic threat to the global financial system. In a letter to the House of Lords’ Financial Services and Regulation Committee seen by City [...]
Streaming surpasses free-to-air TV in key European markets, research shows March 19, 2026 Streaming has already surpassed linear television in key European markets, new research released this week shows. Fans now consume a larger share of sport via digital platforms than free-to-air television in Italy and Spain, with Iberian audiences watching around 40 per cent more of their sport through streaming services, according to Altman Solon’s Global Sports [...]