Drone strikes and noise disputes: The soaring risks of the global data centre boom Insurance As data centres scale, consume more power, and draw tighter community scrutiny, insurance risks are becoming increasingly complex. As AI infrastructure grows, so do legal risks: large lawsuits involving data centres more than tripled from four in all of 2021 to 14 in the first half of 2026, according to a Howden report. Planning and [...]
Family of suspected ‘Putney pusher’ hit out at Met Police ‘pressure’ Law The family of the multi-millionaire banker accused of being the ‘Putney pusher’ have hit out at the Metropolitan Police over his death, insisting on his innocence. Nicholas Brandram, who worked as a director at a private bank and was a former British Army officer, serving in several major conflicts, was discovered dead in his West [...]
Santander and BMW in High Court spat over motor finance dispute Banking Santander and Volvo are taking BMW to the High Court over a dispute related to motor finance deals, City AM can reveal. The Spanish banking giant, along with Volvo Financial Services, is claiming the carmaker caused damages after auto dealers unlawfully re-sold the same luxury vehicles to BMW, leaving both firms claiming ownership over the [...]
Winkworth warns on profit citing family boardroom bust-up September 16, 2026 London estate agent Winkworth has warned on profits for the year ahead, citing the legal costs tied to a boardroom family feud that has led its chief executive to take his father to court. The Aim-listed company, which is one of the UK’s oldest estate agents and specialises in high-end properties in boroughs like Pimlico, [...]
Clean up or lawyer up: The FCA’s culture war gets real September 16, 2026 With the City watchdog empowered to penalise non-financial misconduct and fresh off a win at the Upper Tribunal, lawyers now expect to be flooded with work from businesses that are grappling with the focus on culture, as bullying, harassment, and serious misconduct are no longer just HR matters, writes Maria Ward-Brennan. The Financial Conduct Authority [...]
Crispin Odey loses appeal to overturn lifetime financial services ban September 14, 2026 Former hedge fund tycoon Crispin Odey has failed to overturn a £1.8m fine and lifetime ban from working in the financial services industry. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) earlier this year hit Odey with the fine and banned him from working in the industry after a series of historic sexual assault allegations from former female [...]
City lawyer pleads not guilty to insider dealing charges September 11, 2026 A City lawyer has pleaded not guilty to five counts of alleged insider dealing for trading in the assets of maternity fashion brand Seraphine Group. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) revealed in July that it charged Richard Bloomfield, 38, with allegedly using inside information he obtained while advising on the buyout of London-listed maternity brand [...]
Barclays faces legal scrutiny over role in £90m ‘Ponzi scheme within a Ponzi scheme’ September 10, 2026 Barclays could be on the hook for as much as £37m over its role in a collapsed ‘Ponzi scheme’ after failing to dismiss claims brought by the company’s liquidators. The FTSE 100 finance giant provided banking services to a company called Denaro from 2013 until its demise a decade later, at which point it faced [...]
FTSE boss calls on City businesses to hire former offenders September 9, 2026 Beazley chief executive Adrian Cox has encouraged City business leaders to hire ex-offenders as he believes in “looking beyond convictions and recognising potential”. The boss of the FTSE specialist insurer, which agreed to be acquired by Zurich Insurance for approximately £8.14bn earlier this year, said: “City employers can transform lives while strengthening their organisations’ access [...]
Playtech’s legal spat with rival deepens after publication of secret report September 9, 2026 Playtech’s long-running legal feud with rival Evolution has deepened after the gambling software firm claimed a previously-hidden report proved its competitor was “problematic” and made money in banned markets. The London-listed firm has been in fierce spat with Evolution since 2020 when Playtech hired an intelligence firm to investigate its Swedish rival. But new proceedings [...]