Zopa secures last-minute £140m injection December 3, 2019 Zopa has secured a £140m cash injection that will help the peer-to-peer lending giant meet regulatory capital requirements to become a bank. The fintech firm has been in talks to secure a major lifeline with an entity connected to US-based private investment firm IAG Capital Partners and its UK arm Silverstripe. Read more: Moody’s downgrades [...]
Dating app advert starring Ulrika Jonsson banned for objectifying women December 3, 2019 An advert for an over-50s dating app starring Swedish TV personality Ulrika Jonsson has been banned over concerns it was offensive and objectified women. The Christmas campaign for mature dating service Lumen showed 52-year-old Jonsson in a red nightie and stockings, and was accompanied by the tagline “Be my stocking filler”. Read more: Twitter outlines [...]
Pakistani property tycoon Malik Riaz Hussain agrees £190m settlement with UK authorities December 3, 2019 Pakistani property tycoon Malik Riaz Hussain has agreed to hand over £190m to UK authorities, following allegations that the funds could have been proceeds of crime. The National Crime Agency said today it had reached a settlement with Hussian, who owns development company Bahria Town – one of the largest private sector employers in Pakistan [...]
IFS questions Labour’s nationalisation plan for utilities December 3, 2019 The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has questioned Labour’s plans to renationalise swaths of the economy, suggesting that the party’s aims could be achieved by changing regulations instead. The economic think tank also said the up-front costs of nationalisation were much less relevant than how well the assets would be managed by the public sector. [...]
Commuter chaos continues as London rail strike standoff enters second day December 3, 2019 The standoff between South Western Railway and the Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) Union went on today, as Labour faced claims it was working alongside union bosses to boost its election prospects. Commuters were left miserable again as the longest rail strike in history entered its second day, with some warning that the remaining [...]
Moody’s downgrades outlook for UK banking system December 3, 2019 The UK banking system’s outlook has been downgraded by credit ratings agency Moody’s, after it cited a swathe of challenges facing lenders in the year ahead. Flagging the persistently low interest rate environment and a competitive mortgage market, Moody’s is forecasting a modest slide in profitability. Read more: Carney appointed UN climate envoy The agency [...]
Hipgnosis signs up songwriter behind Adele and Stormzy hits December 3, 2019 Music royalties investment firm Hipgnosis has announced the latest addition to its roster of musicians, signing up the brains behind hit tracks by Adele and Stormzy. Read more: That’s a rap: Hipgnosis lands Timbaland catalogue as it beefs up portfolio The London-listed firm today said it has acquired a music catalogue from British songwriter and [...]
General Election 2019: Lib Dems squeezed in London as Labour starts to fight back December 3, 2019 London’s swing voters are beginning to return to a resurgent Labour, with the Liberal Democrats starting to fade away, a new poll published today has revealed. Jeremy Corbyn’s party has clawed back eight points since November, to 47 per cent, while the Conservatives edged up one point to 30 per cent, according to a YouGov [...]
Tesla CEO Elon Musk set to testify at ‘pedo guy’ trial today December 3, 2019 Elon Musk is expected to testify today at a defamation case brought against him for calling a British cave diver a “pedo guy”. The Los Angeles Federal Court case begins today and will put Musk and his accuser Vernon Unsworth face-to-face for the first time. Read more: Tesla CEO Elon Musk will testify at his [...]
Tiktok accused of secretly sending US user data to China December 3, 2019 Chinese social media platform Tiktok has been accused of transferring “vast quantities” of user data to China, despite its assurances that all data was stored in the US. A class-action lawsuit filed in California said Tiktok “clandestinely has vacuumed up and transferred to servers in China vast quantities of private and personally-identifiable user data”. Read [...]