Norwegian wealth fund buys up old Amazon HQ in London for £321.1m September 27, 2018 Norway’s sovereign investment fund today revealed it has bought a 100 per cent stake in an office building in central London for £321.3m. The seller was VGV Immobilienfonds II, a fund managed by Union Investment Institutional Property. The building at 60 Holborn Viaduct is the former London headquarters of tech giant Amazon, which moved to [...]
Out with the old, in with the new UK high street September 26, 2018 A tale of two retailers dominated the high street yesterday – Next’s shares jumped nearly eight per cent after the fashion giant lifted its full-year profit guidance while Card Factory’s shares lost a tenth of their value after profits were off-message. Read more: Next nudges up profit guidance after blistering summer The diverging fortunes [...]
Sky’s the limit: Dramatic auction between Comcast and Fox nears its conclusion September 22, 2018 The dramatic fate of Sky is nearing its finale, as a £26bn head-to-head auction between two of the world’s most powerful media companies enters into its final few hours. Comcast is battling it out with Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox and its powerful soon-to-be owner Disney in a rare auction, which includes up to three [...]
Amazon reportedly planning 3,000 cashierless convenience stores September 20, 2018 Online retail giant Amazon is reportedly planning to open 3,000 cashierless stores over the next few years as it bulks up its bricks-and-mortar retail presence. Amazon could aggressively expand its Amazon Go brand with plans to open 10 locations by the end of this year, according to Bloomberg, with 50 locations in major cities by [...]
EU competition watchdog launches probe into Amazon’s business practices September 19, 2018 Amazon's business practices will be put under the microscope as the EU competition watchdog launched a probe into how the retailer uses data collected from smaller merchants. The preliminary investigation will scrutinise how the online shopping giant uses data it collects as a host for merchants and as a seller itself, as Amazon sells its own products [...]
DEBATE: Is it fair to judge entrepreneurs like Amazon’s Jeff Bezos for their philanthropic efforts? September 18, 2018 Is it fair to judge entrepreneurs like Amazon’s Jeff Bezos for their philanthropic efforts? Sarah Turner, managing director of Carter Wong, says YES. We live in a world where the “haves” and “have nots” grow ever further apart. It’s also a world where big brands are waking up to the power of investing in social good [...]
Tech stocks hit as Trump mulls fresh $200bn tariffs on China September 18, 2018 The Trump administration late last night ratcheted up its trade war with China by imposing tariffs on $200bn (£152bn) more of the world’s second largest economy’s goods starting next week. The tariffs will start at 10 per cent, rising to 25 per cent on 1 January, allowing US companies some time to adjust their supply [...]
Amazon launches investigation into claims employees accept bribes for leaked data September 17, 2018 Online retailer Amazon is to conduct an investigation into claims that some of its employees have been accepting bribes for exchanging confidential sales data. The Wall Street Journal reported that employees are allegedly selling information on sales and searches to independent merchants using its platform, as well as deleting negative reviews, with the aim of [...]
Archbishop of Canterbury to lead effort to tackle £400m Wonga bill September 15, 2018 The archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby is to lead an effort to pay for the £400m loan bill left by Wonga after the payday loan provider collapsed last month. The Guardian reported that Welby will meet investors and charitable foundations at Lambeth Palace next week to co-ordinate an effort to rescue around 200,000 customers who are faced [...]
Church of England will keep Amazon shares despite Archbishop criticism September 14, 2018 The Church of England will hold onto its Amazon stock even after the Archbishop of Canterbury accused the online retail behemoth of “leeching off the taxpayer”. Church commissioners disclosed that Amazon was one of the CoE’s 20 most valuable equity holdings in their annual 2017 report. But they will keep hold of their shares despite [...]