Has Branson’s satellite dream been grounded? Virgin Orbit files for bankruptcy in the US April 4, 2023 Sir Richard Branson’s satellite launch firm Virgin Orbit has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the US after failing to secure rescue funding. It comes after a Virgin Orbit rocket failed to complete the first satellite launch from UK soil in January. On Tuesday, the business lodged a filing with the US Bankruptcy Court for [...]
Confusion on Twitter as Elon Musk fails to take blue ticks off site – despite saying they’d go on 1 April April 3, 2023 Twitter has failed to take legacy blue checkmarks off the social media platform after it committed to remove them on April 1. The business, led by billionaire owner Elon Musk, has also confused many people by making older verified users indistinguishable from those who have paid for the checkmark. It comes after Mr Musk said [...]
UK housing model is ‘broken’, says Michael Gove April 3, 2023 The UK’s housing model is “broken”, housing secretary Michael Gove has said. The comments by the senior cabinet minister come in a foreword to a collection of essays by liberal conservative think tank Bright Blue. First reported by the Times newspaper, Mr Gove writes: “We desperately need more homes to bring ownership within reach of [...]
‘Hunt failed firms’: Warning of bleak outlook as businesses face 85 per cent drop in energy bill support – BCC March 31, 2023 Business leaders are stepping up warnings that firms will struggle to pay energy bills when a government relief scheme ends on Saturday.
Down to earth for Branson’s Virgin Orbit satellite firm as funding dries up and 85 per cent of staff are cut March 31, 2023 Sir Richard Branson’s satellite launch firm Virgin Orbit is to cut 675 jobs – about 85% of its workforce – after failing to secure new funding. The entrepreneur has said he will inject almost £9 million to go towards severance costs. It comes amid reports from the Financial Times that Virgin Orbit’s chief executive Dan [...]
Advantage Putin? Wimbledon U-turns to let Russia and Belarus stars like Sabalenka and Medvedev compete March 31, 2023 Russian and Belarusian players will be allowed to compete at Wimbledon this year, the All England Club has announced. Athletes from the two countries must sign declarations of neutrality and must not express support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, while players who receive funding from the Russian or Belarusian states, including sponsorship from state owned [...]
Musk verification, laughing gas, webcam gaffes, ChatGPT and cyber crime pay: Here’s your week in tweets! March 31, 2023 The markets quietened this week, with European banking stocks recovering the losses they had posted in the week after Credit Suisse’s shotgun marriage with UBS. But the internet never sleeps and the news rumbles on, so City A.M. have sorted through cyberspace to bring you the best of what you might have missed. 1. Elon [...]
Four ex bankers convicted over accounts with Putin-linked man who’s ‘part of system that managed his offshore wealth’ March 30, 2023 Four former bankers with the Swiss affiliate of a key Russian bank have been found guilty of failing to properly check accounts opened in the name of a Russian cellist with long-time ties to President Vladimir Putin. The defendants were handed suspended sentences in Zurich district court that, if violated, could lead collectively to hundreds [...]
Tory row erupts over response to US green subsidies after Hunt refuses to go ‘toe to toe’ with Biden March 30, 2023 Conservative MPs are divided over plans for the UK’s response to the US green subsidies scheme after the Chancellor said Britain would not go “toe to toe” with president Joe Biden. Net zero secretary Grant Shapps today unveiled proposals to ‘power up’ Britain with new energy security measures, in what was expected to be a [...]
Treasury hunts for a new cybersecurity boss – guess how little they are paying? March 30, 2023 Protecting the UK Treasury from a whole host of cyber threats sounds like quite an important role, and one that you might think warrants a decent salary in order to secure someone with the technical skill and professional track record who is able to take on the task. Well, not quite. Despite claiming the UK [...]