Sports Direct left looking like giant mugs as auditor Grant Thornton quits August 14, 2019 Sports Direct shares have tumbled to their lowest level since 2011 after it emerged that Mike Ashley’s retail empire could be left without an auditor, breaching stock market rules. The company is understood to have sought government advice over what would happen if it is unable to find an auditor after its current auditor Grant [...]
Grant Thornton quits as Sports Direct auditor August 14, 2019 Sports Direct faces being left without an auditor after Grant Thornton told the retailer it would not apply for reappointment. The decision threatens to leave Sports Direct high and dry as all of the Big Four firms have indicated they are reluctant to take on the role. The Financial Times reported that Sports Direct has [...]
Barclays stops banking cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase August 14, 2019 Barclays is no longer providing banking services for cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase, according to reports by Reuters. The bank had been providing services to Coinbase since the exchange’s European expansion in March last year, making it easier for its users to purchase cryptocurrencies with sterling and withdraw funds. Coinbase, which is based in San Francisco, brokers [...]
Canary Wharf veteran George Iacobescu to step down as chief executive August 14, 2019 The man who spearheaded Canary Wharf’s transformation from an abandoned dockyards to a thriving financial hub is to stand down as chief executive of the site’s owners after over two decades in the role, but will stay on as chairman of the company. Sir George Iacobescu, who is currently both chief executive and chairman of [...]
Admiral profits dented £33m by insurance regulation change August 14, 2019 Car insurer Admiral has taken a £33.3m hit to its profits following the introduction of changes to how compensation for those injured in accidents is calculated. The figures The government changed the Ogden rate, which governs how much insurers pay to people seriously injured in car accidents, in July. Admiral said the changes had cut [...]
Investment companies’ assets reach record £200bn August 12, 2019 Assets under management by the investment company industry have surpassed £200bn for the first time, and have doubled over the past six and a half years. The industry’s assets hit a record £200.3bn by the end of July, according to data from the Association of Investment Companies (AIC), doubling in size since hitting £100m in [...]
Financial Conduct Authority looking into Muddy Waters short attack on Burford Capital August 12, 2019 The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has said it is making “wide-ranging enquiries” into the circumstances surrounding the publication of a shortselling report on Burford Capital by Muddy Waters. US shortseller Muddy Waters launched a short attack on the litigation finance company last week, tweeting that it would shortly be announcing a new short position before [...]
Martin Sorrell’s S4 Capital buys influencer agency IMA August 12, 2019 Sir Martin Sorrell’s advertising company S4 Capital has bought IMA, Europe’s largest influencer marketing company, for €10m (£9.3m) and will merge it with its existing content arm, Mediamonks. Amsterdam-based IMA, which was founded in 2010, selects influencers to create tailored online marketing campaigns for brands including Microsoft, Heineken, and Samsonite. Sorrell founded S4 Capital last [...]
Blackrock buys $875m stake in Authentic Brands August 12, 2019 Blackrock has bought an $875m (£727m) stake in Authentic Brands, making it the largest shareholder in the celebrity licensing company that owns brand rights to Marilyn Monroe and Muhammed Ali The acquisition of a controlling stake in Authentic Brands, which also owns Sports Illustrated and Juicy Couture, marks the first investment for Blackrock’s new private [...]
Burford Capital alleges ‘market manipulation’ ahead of Muddy Waters short attack August 12, 2019 Burford Capital said it has identified evidence consistent with “illegal market manipulation” of its shares in the run up to a short attack on the company by Muddy Waters. The litigation finance company said it had analysed trading data from the 6 and 7 August with the help of a market manipulation expert, and had [...]
