Thick black smoke seen over central London as 125 firefighters tackle blazing fire at Trafalgar Square pub July 12, 2022 Firefighters have been tackling a blaze in the basement of a pub near Trafalgar Square in London on Tuesday evening, with thick black smoke seen stretching over the centre of the capital. The London Fire Brigade confirmed on social media that 20 fire engines and around 125 firefighters are still dealing with the blaze. Around [...]
City watchdog tells banks to treat small businesses ‘fairly’ during cost-of-living crunch July 12, 2022 The UK’s financial watchdog has told Britain’s top banks to improve their treatment of struggling small business owners when collecting and recovering debts. The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said Britain’s banks should take action to ensure fair treatment of small and medium enterprise (SME) customers, after the watchdog uncovered repeated instances of failures during [...]
Big banks axe dealmaker jobs as revenues tumble July 12, 2022 Major investment banks have started cutting dealmaker jobs after last year’s hiring binge as revenues fall. 12 big banks have slashed their investment banker roles in the second quarter of 2022, according to research from data provider Coalition Greenwich, as reported by Financial News London. These include Bank of America, Barclays, BNP Paribas, Citigroup, Credit [...]
London businesses crimped by cost of living spending slowdown July 12, 2022 London’s businesses are being crimped by Brits cutting spending in response to the cost of living squeeze, reveals a survey released today. Some one in four of the capital’s firms have suffered income hits over the last three months, up from a fifth in the first quarter of this year, according to the London Chamber [...]
Sanctions bite: London-listed Russian mining firm Petropavlovsk to suspend trading and file for administration July 12, 2022 London-listed Russian gold mining firm Petropavlovsk will cease trading and file for administration after revealing it was unable to repay a $201m (£169.3m) loan to a sanctioned bank. Sanctions against Kremlin-linked firms continued to bite this week, with the Petropavlovsk in debt to Gazprombank, that has been targeted over the war in Ukraine. The bank [...]
Lloyd’s to stay in iconic headquarters until at least 2031 July 8, 2022 Lloyd’s of London is set to stay in its iconic City of London headquarters until at least 2031, according to new reports that quell rumours the insurer had been planning to leave its purpose-built tower in 2026. There is now “zero chance” the insurer will trigger the lease break clause in its contract with its [...]
Wining & Dining: riverside staple Le Pont de la Tour opens a new bistro July 7, 2022 Le Pont de la Tour has, for over three decades, been such a constant in the City-ish dining landscape that it’s quite possible to forget it exists at all. Nestled right by the river at Shad Thames, Le Pont built a reputation for its high-end French cuisine and its nice views of Tower Bridge. Since [...]
Saudi diplomat should not be shielded from ‘modern slavery’ lawsuit, UK’s Supreme Court says July 6, 2022 A Saudi diplomat should not be shielded from a ‘modern slavery’ lawsuit – brought against him by one of his former domestic workers – because of diplomatic immunity, the UK’s highest court has said. Saudi Arabian diplomat Khalid Basfar should be forced to face an employment tribunal over claims he kept Filipino national Josephine Wong [...]
Londoners owed £40m in council tax refunds July 3, 2022 London households are owed £40m in council tax refunds, new research yesterday revealed. An investigation by Moneysavingexpert.com showed that 862,027 households in England, Scotland and Wales were due a refund in overpaid council tax. With claims worth a total of £150.2m, households that have overpaid their council tax are owed an average of £174 each. [...]
City of London elections: Biggs wants to bring the City back to life June 30, 2022 As the City of London prepares for elections, one candidate wants to reinvigorate the Square Mile. Nigel Biggs is one of five hopefuls in the Walbrook Ward for the forthcoming 7 July vote in the City of London, a municipality which has been functioning since at least 1032. With people spending more time working from [...]