Banking watchdog calls in PwC for Goldman Sachs reporting probe February 25, 2020 The UK’s banking watchdog has reportedly called in a Big Four accountancy firm to examine Goldman Sachs’ regulatory reporting in its London operation. The Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) has hired audit firm PwC to carry out a so-called skilled person’s report on Goldman Sachs International, Sky News reported. The appointment follows concerns about supervision at [...]
Tesco exits China with £275m stake sale February 25, 2020 Tesco has sold its 20 per cent share in its China joint venture for £275m as it nears a potential deal for its Thailand and Malaysia businesses. The supermarket giant announced this morning that it has offloaded its stake in Gain Land – which was established in 2014 – to a subsidiary of its joint [...]
Hammerson’s losses widen as retail CVAs dent rents February 25, 2020 Retail landlord Hammerson today warned it will cut its 2020 dividend almost in half as losses mounted in 2019 after another tough year for retailers in which many renegotiated their rents. The figures The real estate giant sank to a £573.8m loss for its latest financial year, up from a £173.3m loss in 2018. While [...]
British Airways extends China flight cancellations until after Easter February 25, 2020 British Airways (BA) has extended its suspension of flights to China until after Easter, the airline announced, after increased fears over the spread of the deadly coronavirus. BA, which had previously said it would cancel all flights to and from Beijing and Shanghai until 1 April, has now said it is extending the ban for [...]
Hotel Chocolat sales boosted by roll-out of new stores February 25, 2020 Shares in Hotel Chocolat are up nearly 10 per cent as its new locations helped deliver a double-digit rise in sales for the first half of the year. The figures Hotel Chocolat reported a 14 per cent increase in revenue to £91.7m, up from £80.7m in the comparable period a year before. Underlying Ebitda rose [...]
Zoopla investor ploughs £3.3m into London gig economy startup’s seed round February 25, 2020 Collective Benefits, a gig economy startup which is set to exit Facebook’s London accelerator next month, has closed £3.3m in seed funding. The round was led by Stride.VC, a backer of Zoopla, Secret Escapes and Pill Pack, with participation from Delin Ventures and Insurtech Gateway. Collective said a number of angel investors also joined the [...]
Is the SFO giving executives an easy ride in bribery cases? February 25, 2020 The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has developed a lucrative model of targeting large companies in bribery and corruption cases, striking a Deferred Prosecution Agreement (DPA) to suspend criminal charges and extracting a sizeable financial penalty. Last month, the SFO agreed a €991m (£831m) DPA with planemaker Airbus as part of a €3.6bn deal with prosecutors [...]
Prudential faces break up calls from Dan Loeb’s Third Point February 25, 2020 Hedge fund manager Dan Loeb has called for the breakup of insurance company Prudential after taking a near $2bn (£1.5bn) stake. Loeb’s New-York based investment firm Third Point has built a five per cent stake in the insurance firm and is now pushing for it to separate its Asian and US operations. It comes just [...]
City Moves for 25 February – Who’s switching jobs at WorldRemit, Workspace and Hines? February 25, 2020 Today’s City Moves includes WorldRemit, Workspace and Hines WorldRemit Mobile payments company WorldRemit has appointed Ian Cafferky as chief marketing officer. Ian joins from O2 where he was responsible for brand and marketing communications, leading the O2 brand to Marketing Society UK Brand of the Year in 2015. He began his career as a strategy [...]
If we want better immigration policies, we first need better immigration debates February 25, 2020 It seems odd to suggest that we should talk more about immigration. It is the policy area which attracts perhaps the most wide-ranging and outraged of political commentary, and was undeniably a key driver in the vote to leave the European Union. Yet the quality of the debate, concerned primarily with numbers and rules, has [...]