Google to automatically delete search and location data June 25, 2020 Google will now automatically delete your search and location history after 18 months, as it attempts to assuage concerns from regulators that it controls too much information about individuals. Users will be able to toggle in their settings to wipe their data every three or 18 months, with the latter now automatically turned on. The [...]
DEBATE: Should the mayor of London move City Hall to the Royal Docks? June 25, 2020 Should the mayor of London move City Hall to the Royal Docks? Joanne McCartney, statutory deputy mayor of London, says YES. The catastrophic economic consequences of Covid-19 have already hit London’s economy hard. Unemployment is rising. Millions are furloughed. Tax revenues have fallen. London councils face a budget shortfall of £1.3bn this year. Transport for [...]
Wirecard files for insolvency after disclosing €1.9bn financial hole June 25, 2020 Wirecard has filed for insolvency after disclosing a €1.9bn financial hole in its accounts. Shares in the firm were suspended by the Frankfurt Stock Exchange before the announcement. Last week shares in the firm fell by 90 per cent after auditor EY refused to sign off Wirecard’s 2019 accounts. In a statement today, the embattled [...]
Qantas to axe 6,000 jobs in coronavirus cost-cutting drive June 25, 2020 Australian airline Qantas will cut around 6,000 jobs and seek to raise up to AU$1.9bn (£1.05bn) as part of a wide-ranging cost-cutting plan prompted by the coronavirus pandemic. Of the 6,000 jobs, which account for about 20 per cent of the airline’s 29,000-strong workforce, roughly half will come from a mixture of cabin crew, engineers [...]
Softbank boss steps down from Alibaba board June 25, 2020 Softbank Group chief executive Masayoshi Son is to step away from his position on the board of Alibaba, as he defended the firm’s financial health and prospects. Son said he sees the move as “graduating” from Alibaba, a month after the e-commerce firm’s founder Jack Ma resigned from his own position on Softbank’s board. Son [...]
Lufthansa shares soar as bailout vote nears June 25, 2020 Shares in German flag carrier Lufthansa jumped this morning after its largest shareholder dropped his opposition to the airline’s state bailout package. Billionaire Heinz Hermann Thiele had previously objected to the terms of the bailout, which would have seen authorities take a 20 per cent stake in the carrier. However, with shareholders preparing the vote [...]
Young’s pub chain taps investors for £88m ahead of pubs reopening June 25, 2020 Young’s pub chain has raised more than £88m from its investors via a share placing ahead of the reopening of pubs from next week. The firm said it had placed a total of 4,263,453 placing shares at 1,160p per share and 4.9m non-voting shares at 735p per share to raise £85.5m. Young’s also raised a [...]
Non-Standard Finance warns of going concern risks due to coronavirus June 25, 2020 Non-Standard Finance has cast doubt on its ability to continue as a going concern due to the impact of coronavirus on business. The lender said it had been a “difficult and disappointing” 18 months which included its failed bid for Provident Financial. The figures Non-Standard Finance reported a £76m loss in the year to 31 [...]
N Brown shares drop as profit falls on ‘year of restructuring’ June 25, 2020 Fashion retailer N Brown has today posted falls in both profit and revenue for the last financial year, blaming the drop on a lengthy period of “restructuring” the business. In the 12 months to 29 February 2020, the owner of the Simply Be and Jacamo brands said adjusted profit before tax fell 28.8 per cent [...]
Royal Mail to slash 2,000 jobs as profit sinks 25 per cent June 25, 2020 Royal Mail is set to make 2,000 staffredundant to save £130m to combat the impact of coronavirus after the sudden departure of its ex-CEO in May. The postal delivery service said it needed to take “immediate action” on costs after profit before tax plunged 25 per cent to £180m in the financial year to the [...]