From star sign to net worth – here’s what makes a billionaire January 8, 2016 Foreign accent, a couple of yachts and probably a secret swimming pool filled with money in their basement: when it comes to the typical billionaire, most of us have a pretty clear idea of what they look like. But new analysis of the last 20 years of Forbes' World's Billionaires list has painted a picture [...]
It’s official: Bitcoin was the top performing currency of 2015 January 8, 2016 Bitcoin is notoriously volatile: so far in its short life, its value has largely been determined by a cycle of hype, followed by panic. But it turns out that despite its wild lurches, the cryptocurrency was the best-performing currency of 2015 – rising 35 per cent against the dollar during the year, according to analysis by The [...]
Danish central bank raises interest rate (but it’s still negative) January 7, 2016 The Danish central bank has raised one of its key interest rates – but it's still in the negative. The bank said today it was hiking its deposit rate to minus 0.65 per cent, up from minus 0.75 per cent. It's not exactly earth-shaking – but it is one of the first European central banks to [...]
Chinese stock exchanges in Shenzhen and Shanghai suspend their circuit-breakers January 7, 2016 We learned this morning that Chinese market circuit-breakers are like buses: you wait ages for one and then two come along at once. But clearly two of the country's largest stock exchanges have had enough: today the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges issued statements saying they're scrapping the circuit-breaker. They're suspending their suspensions The circuit-breaker [...]
George Osborne: Tracey McDermott ruled out for FCA chief executive role January 7, 2016 UPDATE: Acting Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) chief executive Tracey McDermott has confirmed that she took her name out of the running to be the regulator's permanent boss in early December. "I have been at the FSA/FCA for 15 years and I remain extremely committed to, and passionate about, the important work we do. It has been, and [...]
Is this the best resignation ever? Billabong boss Ed Leasure steps down so he can “surf more” January 7, 2016 Leasure by name, leisure by nature: Billabong boss Ed Leasure has handed in his notice, the Australia-listed company announced today – because he wants to "surf more". "After getting into the business to surf more, I'm now stepping back from the business to surf more," Leasure – president of the Americas at the company – said in a statement [...]
2015 was a record year for new car registrations – but VW has lost January 7, 2016 Everyone's a petrolhead now. The year 2015 was a record year for new car registrations, new figures have shown, with 2.63m new vehicles registered during the year – up 6.3 per cent from last year. That was boosted by December – the biggest on record – during which 180,077 new cars were registered, up 8.4 per [...]
Halifax house price index: UK house prices rose 9.5 per cent last year. Yawn January 7, 2016 Another day, another confirmation that homes in the UK are increasingly unaffordable. House prices have risen 9.5 per cent in the year to December, according to figures from Halifax, which showed the average house price is now a £208,286. Ouch. Still: the UK's house prices are nothing if not dependable. The figure meant annual price growth stuck between [...]
Valeant pharmaceuticals names Howard Schiller interim chief executive as Michael Pearson remains in hospital January 6, 2016 Troubled Canadian pharmaceuticals giant Valeant has named former chief financial officer Howard Schiller interim chief executive, after its chief executive was admitted to hospital with severe pneumonia. In a statement today, the company said Schiller, who stepped down as chief financial officer in June last year but remains on its board of directors, will serve on [...]
Finally: Foreign secretary Philip Hammond confirms China and UK will offer each other multiple entry visas January 6, 2016 Foreign secretary Philip Hammond has confirmed that China and the UK will offer one another two-year multiple entry visas for the first time. The news comes after years of cajoling from business organisations to allow Chinese tourists to visit the UK without going through the complicated process of applying for a visa each time. "From [...]
