Buy now, pay later providers set for £3bn hit in ‘regulatory reset’ February 11, 2026 Providers of buy now, pay later services are set to feel the crunch as the UK’s financial watchdog tightens its regulatory focus on the fast-growing industry. Merchants and lenders are set to take a combined hit of as much as £3bn following the regulation overhaul by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), according to its own [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Gold surges past $5,000, S4 Capital shares rocket January 26, 2026 Good morning from the City AM liveblog team. While brokers and stock exchange managers are hoping for an IPO comeback in 2026 after a four-year drought, some investors are less keen to see a flood of fresh companies hitting the market. Speaking at an Innovate Finance panel discussion chaired by City AM, James Codling, managing [...]
Mike Ashley confronts Asos board in latest retail row January 24, 2026 Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group voted against resolutions at online fashion retailer Asos’s general meeting, sparking fears that the high street magnate could prompt further disruptions at listed companies. Various company resolutions were passed by Asos on Friday afternoon but Ashley looked to spoil the party with disruptive votes in meetings, it has been reported. The [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Asos shares tumble, retail sales drop, Babcock sinks November 21, 2025 Good morning from the City AM liveblog team. With just days to go before the Budget, there is increasing investor nervousness about what surprises could be in-store for businesses. Few are expecting those surprises to be pleasant. Speaking to the paper yesterday, the boss of the world’s biggest platinum group metals recycler warned Rachel Reeves [...]
Topshop and Topman losses revealed before John Lewis move October 7, 2025 Losses at the joint venture behind Topshop and Topman have been revealed ahead of the brand’s return to UK stores next year. The brands were sold by online clothing retailer Asos to a joint venture alongside Danish retail tycoon Anders Holch Povlsen’s Heartland in September 2024. Asos had previously acquired Topshop and Topman along with [...]
Youtube bets on AI ads as viewing habits evolve October 5, 2025 Youtube has become a near-ubiquitous presence in UK homes, with 47.9m adults now using the platform across devices. Ipsos data shows the average viewer spends 78 minutes a day watching its content, with the platform leading in so-called ‘connected TV’ viewing ahead of traditional broadcasters and other streaming services. For brands, this scale is attractive: [...]
Asos shares sink after sales fall behind expectations September 30, 2025 Shares in e-commerce fashion firm Asos have tumbled after the company reported sales short of expectations and vowed to extend its cost-cutting programme in a bid to secure “even stronger profitability foundations”. The London-based business said it “had planned to shift gears” from rebuilding its commercial model towards “re-engaging with customers.” “Instead, more opportunity to [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Asos and Close Brothers lead City stocks’ fall as economic growth slows September 30, 2025 Good morning from the City AM liveblog team. When Rachel Reeves prepared her inaugural budget last year, she had little in the way of good news to impart to the people of Britain. The chancellor said she’d been left a bad inheritance, and had to raise tens of billions of pounds in extra taxes to plug spending [...]
New Look owners line up Rothschild as high street chain prepares for possible sale August 24, 2025 The owners of New Look have appointed Rothschild to oversee a strategic review that could see the high street fashion chain change hands next year. Alcentra and Brait, which have controlled the retailer since 2020, tapped the investment bank after receiving unsolicited approaches from potential buyers, Sky News reported. No timeline has been set for [...]
Tiktok gives retailers a headache with boom in returns culture July 18, 2025 Retailers are facing a conundrum. Their customers are searching for and buying clothes via Tiktok and Instagram, but those same social media customers are increasingly less likely to keep the clothes they buy. A surge in the number of clothes sent back to retailers has caused issues with both costs and with environmental goals, but [...]