Mortgage approvals decline in November as Brexit uncertainty impacts housing market January 4, 2019 The number of mortgage approvals fell to a seven-month low in November as Brexit concerns continued to rattle the housing market. Mortgage approvals fell to 63,728 in November, down from 66,709 the previous month, according to new figures from the Bank of England (BoE) released today. Mortgage lending rose by £3.5bn in the same month, lower than the [...]
UK house prices fall in December on Brexit uncertainty as annual growth rate hits six-year low January 4, 2019 UK house prices fell by 0.7 per cent in December, as prices’ annual growth rate dropped to its lowest level in almost six years. Prices grew by just 0.5 per cent year on year, compared to 2.6 per cent growth in 2017, but fell compared to November. London recorded a 0.8 per cent decline in house [...]
UK house prices 2019: What experts say will happen after Brexit December 31, 2018 Has there ever been a more difficult time to predict the future of UK house prices? Political uncertainty looms large over the UK’s property market, but experts have nonetheless given their expectations for the year to come. Bank of England governor Mark Carney showed how dangerous the numbers game can be in November, when he had [...]
Royal London chief executive to step down by the end of 2019 December 11, 2018 Life insurer Royal London’s chief executive Phil Loney is set to step down by the end of 2019, the company said today. Loney is standing down to concentrate on charity work in the international development sector and helping people with learning difficulties. He joined the insurance and pensions mutual in 2011 during which time it [...]
How the UK can work with Japan to make the world a safer and more stable place December 4, 2018 The language of diplomacy can sometimes be very general. Diplomats and politicians invoke the idea of “partnerships” and “strong bilateral relations” without making clear to their citizens why they matter or what the benefits might be. Talk about trading opportunities gives a sense of something practical emerging from these sorts of relationship, but trade and investment is just [...]
Nationwide profits fall as technology investment cuts into bottom line November 22, 2018 Profits fell by a fifth at Nationwide in its half-year results today, with the building society’s technology investment weighing down earnings. The figures Profit before tax tumbled 17.8 per cent to £516m for the six months to the end of September, compared to the same period in 2017, as it took a £135m charge for asset [...]
UK house price growth slumps to five-year low in October November 1, 2018 House prices grew at their slowest annual rate for five years in October, Nationwide data revealed today. House price growth slumped to 1.6 per cent last month, with prices flat month on month as the latest figures paint a miserable picture for housing activity across the UK. October’s 1.6 per cent growth rate fell from [...]
TSB’s prolonged IT crisis cost it 16,600 customers October 24, 2018 TSB lost more than 16,600 customers to rivals between April and June, after an IT fiasco prevented up to 1.9m people from accessing their bank accounts. The crisis led to TSB announcing a pre-tax loss of £107.4m during its half-year results in July, down from £108.3m profit in the same period last year. Read more: Investigation [...]
Growing the UK games industry’s success shouldn’t be taxing October 18, 2018 The video games industry is one of the UK’s great success stories. Last week’s report by the British Film Institute (BFI) showed that the sector is thriving, describing it as a “significant entertainment industry”, which has produced a “wide array of globally successful and culturally impactful entertainment products”. At The Independent Games Developers' Association (TIGA), [...]
Token Intelligence: When the revolution begins October 9, 2018 When will it kickoff? It already has! (You just cannot see it yet). Perhaps the most enjoyable part of my role these days is that I get to meet some of the brightest minds in business, not least via ICOrad.io interviews, but also strategy sessions – this last week with a sector leading CEO who [...]