AllianzGI chief executive warns of AI ‘socialism’ as investors lean on chatbots Investing The chief executive of one of Europe’s largest asset managers has urged investors to avoid being over-reliant on general online chatbots to manage their portfolios, as it increases the risk of losses. Speaking at AllianzGI’s media day in Frankfurt, Tobias Pross, chief executive of AllianzGI, warned that relying on public online models, such as Claude, [...]
Investec shares rise amid takeover speculation Investing Investec shares jumped in early Wednesday trading after the South African financial giant became subject to takeover speculation. Shares rose as much as 4.6 per cent before settling at 1.4 per cent, trading at 669.5p, following reports from M&A blog site Betaville that the bank may have attracted takeover interest, with it citing “people following [...]
Iran conflict could cause further decline to M&A, leading tax firm warns Investing Merger and acquisition deal activity could see a further hit this financial quarter if the US and Iran do not reach a resolution to the conflict, a leading tax and accountancy firm has warned. The number of domestic and cross-border mergers and acquisition (M&A) transactions involving a change in majority share ownership fell to 352 [...]
Whitbread: Activist investor pushes for sale of FTSE 100 Premier Inn owner May 18, 2026 An activist investor with a major stake in Premier Inn’s owner Whitbread has called for the FTSE 100 firm to put itself up for sale, attacking its “chronic misallocation of capital”. Corvex Management, which owns 11.8m shares – around seven per cent – in Whitbread, has issued a scathing rejection of the firm’s latest cost-saving [...]
Nelson Peltz’s son calls for Intertek to engage with £10bn offer May 12, 2026 Matt Peltz, the son of billionaire activist investor Nelson Peltz, has called on FTSE 100 testing firm Intertek to accept the latest £10bn offer by a Swedish private equity firm, as investors clash over whether the board should sell up. The buyout firm submitted its fourth offer on Tuesday morning, which valued shares at £60 [...]
Herald trust saved after Saba and Aberdeen ink deal May 7, 2026 Aberdeen and US activist hedge fund Saba have reached agreement for the Scottish investment juggernaut to manage Herald Investment Trust, ending a years-long arm wrestle over the trust’s future. In an eleventh-hour deal that will save Herald from being wound down, Aberdeen will recruit eight of the fund’s staff – including fund manager Katie Potts [...]
Not everyone in the City is friends with Savvy the Squirrel April 27, 2026 Last week the government rolled out its industry-backed nationwide campaign to encourage more Brits to enter the stock market in a bid to revitalise the stock exchange. The ‘Invest for the Future’ campaign has employed Savvy the Squirrel to carry the message across the UK, in reminiscence of the Tell Sid adverts in 1986, with [...]
Semi-liquid vehicles set to surpass $3 trillion as more retail investors enter the market April 20, 2026 Wealth managers and private market fund managers anticipate semi-liquid assets under management to rocket over the next four years, as more retail investors tap into the market. Assets under management (AUM) held in semi-liquid vehicles is expected to exceed $3 trillion (£2.2 trillion) in 2030, according to Carne Group, with the market nearly tripling between [...]
War of words erupts after Saba wins trust shareholder showdown April 13, 2026 A war of words has broken out between American activist hedge fund Saba and the investment trust it is trying to take control of, after the US investor won a crunch shareholder vote paving the way for it to seize power at the 130-year-old FTSE 250 trust. Saba Capital launched a fresh broadside against Edinburgh [...]
Iran war sparks sharp reversal in European ETF rally April 9, 2026 European ETF flows ran out of road in March, as the Iran war pared back market gains from the first two months of the year and investors returned to the sidelines. The European exchange-traded fund (ETF) and exchange-traded commodities (ETC) market saw a sharp decline in investment during March, gathering only €9.4bn (£8.1bn), according to [...]