Tech training top of the agenda for UK businesses January 28, 2021 UK businesses are prioritising digital transformation amid the pandemic with tech training coming top of the agenda. The pandemic has seen a rapid uptake in digital adoption as consumers are forced to shop online and businesses are being forced to adapt. An overwhelming majority of large firms have said the pandemic has prompted them to [...]
St James’s Place reports £2.3bn in inflows after ‘extraordinary’ year January 28, 2021 Wealth manager St James’s Place reported £2.3bn of net inflows after an “extraordinary” year which saw its funds under management soar. As of 31 December the firm’s funds under management stood at a record £129.3bn, an 11 per cent increase on the previous year. Despite the pandemic gross inflows of £14.33bn fell just five per [...]
FTSE 100 dips as sterling rallies and investors await big tech earnings January 27, 2021 The FTSE 100 fell on Wednesday as sterling rallied amid US stimulus speculation and investors eyed a busy day of tech earnings on Wall Street. London’s blue-chip index is down 2.2 per cent to 6,539 points while the more domestically-focused FTSE 250 was trading flat. Boris Johnson confirmed the third lockdown would continue until 8 [...]
Melvin Capital closes Gamestop short position amid Reddit feud January 27, 2021 The hedge fund targeted by Reddit investors Melvin Capital reportedly closed out its short position in Gamestop on Tuesday. The bricks-and-mortar retailer was targeted by an army of Reddit investors from the forum “Wall Street Bets” which boasts more than 2m subscribers. Manager of the fund Gabe Plotkin told CNBC it had closed out its [...]
Contactless payments could be raised to £100 following Brexit agreement January 27, 2021 The limit for contactless card payments could more than double under new proposals being considered by the regulator now the UK has left the EU. The limit for contactless payments was raised from £30 to £45 last April at the start of the pandemic but could not be raised further due to a limit [...]
Brewin Dolphin total funds exceed pre-pandemic levels January 27, 2021 Fund manager Brewin Dolphin reported record total funds as market sentiment rebounded off the back of the Brexit deal and vaccine rollout. Total funds increased eight per cent to a record £54.1bn in the first quarter with total inflows of £0.6bn Net inflows stood at £0.1bn in the three months to December. It represents an [...]
S&P 500 reaches record high while FTSE gains despite dire unemployment figures January 26, 2021 The S&P 500 reached record highs on Tuesday ahead of a packed day of earnings, while the FTSE 100 recovered some of Monday’s losses despite a dire set of unemployment figures. London’s blue-chip index opened flat before rising 0.4 per cent higher to reach 6,666 points by mid-afternoon, while the benchmark S&P inched 0.1 per [...]
‘Robots will take our jobs’: Eigen boss Lewis Liu on the future of the City worker January 26, 2021 It’s very rare a chief executive will say their work will lead to mass job cuts, not least one of an artificial intelligence firm. But Eigen Technologies’ Lewis Liu is not like your everyday boss. He is surprisingly frank in an industry that does an impressive job of spinning mass job cuts. “I’m not going [...]
Apollo boss Leon Black steps down after review into Epstein ties January 26, 2021 Leon Black will step down as chief executive of Apollo Global Management following an independent review into his ties to Jeffrey Epstein. “Given the extraordinary strength and depth of Apollo’s management team and consistent with best-in-class governance practices, I have advised the Apollo Board that I will retire as CEO on or before my 70th [...]
Angel CoFund rebrands as it launches new £30m ‘fast-track’ fund January 26, 2021 Angel CoFund has rebranded to ACF Investors as it launches a new £30m fund for early-stage UK businesses as angel activity drops off. The VC firm, which is in its tenth year, makes equity investments of between £100,000 and £1m in the UK’s smaller businesses and invests alongside angel investors. Speaking to City A.M., managing [...]
