Covid-19: South Africa records fall in cases for third day in a row and fewer hospital admissions December 21, 2021 The number of daily Covid cases in South Africa have fallen for the third day in a row, while hospital admissions also dropped in the country where the Omicron variant was first detected one month ago. While cases climb in both the UK and France, which shut its borders to Brits last week, there is hope that the latest [...]
Government’s proposal for independent insolvencies regulator draws criticism from sector December 21, 2021 Insolvency and restructuring trade body R3 have warned of a major conflict of interest issue brought by the government’s proposals to shake up the insolvencies industry with a new independent regulator. The government want to introduce a single regulator, which would sit within government agency Insolvency Service, to oversee the UK insolvency sector. The reforms [...]
Hospitality sector ‘bleeding out’ with looming £1.5bn Christmas Eve rent bill December 21, 2021 A £1.5bn rent bill and the sudden drop in seasonal shopping means the hospitality sector faces a flood of bankruptcies in the new year, according to reports. The £1.5bn payment for rent is due on Christmas Eve, according to the Telegraph, which first reported the news. But a third of pubs, bars and restaurants have [...]
River & Mercantile bidding war deadline extended December 21, 2021 Asset manager River & Mercantile (R&M) has extended the deadline for takeover bids from its suitors AssetCo and Premier Milton into the new year. The new deadline is 18 January, but R&M said “This revised deadline may be extended further, at the request of the Board of River and Mercantile and with the consent of [...]
Insurer Hiscox names new group chief financial officer December 21, 2021 International insurer Hiscox Ltd has announced former EY partner and industry expert Paul Cooper as its new group chief financial officer. A qualified chartered accountant who trained with PwC, Cooper is currently the interim group chief financial officer of M&G Plc, a FTSE 100 asset manager and life insurer. Cooper will be rewarded with a [...]
Simmons & Simmons gift junior lawyers £100k salary December 20, 2021 City law firm Simmons & Simmons will boost pay for its newly qualified lawyers in London to £100,000, in a bid to retain junior lawyers being wooed by other firms with the promise of ever higher starting salaries. The rise marks a jump of £12,000 for newly qualified lawyers at the firm, who currently take [...]
Almost half of FTSE 350 firms have BAME directors as pressure for diversity accelerates December 20, 2021 Nearly half of FTSE 350 companies now have a director of colour on their board, driven by increasing pressure on companies to improve diversity at leadership level. Of FTSE 350 companies, 45 per cent – meaning 123 companies – were recorded as having a director from a black, Asian or minority ethnic background in 2021, [...]
KPMG halts referrals to its former restructuring unit in bid to recover from Silentnight scandal December 20, 2021 KPMG will no longer refer any work to its former insolvency unit, Interpath Advisory, in a bid to mend its reputation after the scandal over the sale of bed manufacturer Silentnight to a private equity firm, according to reports. The Big Four firm was fined £13m by the UK accounting watchdog earlier this year for [...]
British Lamborghinis supplier to debut on AIM with £75m listing December 20, 2021 CT Automotive will debut on London’s junior stock market with a market capitalisation of around £75m this week, after raising £33.6m in an initial public offering (IPO). The company supplies parts for the interiors of cars, such as cup holders, air vents and dashboard panels. Nissan, luxury brands including Bentley and Lamborghini and electric car [...]
Global M&A activity hits new record of $5 trillion in 2021 December 20, 2021 Global merger and acquisition (M&A) activity records of all time have been smashed this year, after exceeding $5 trillion for the first time. Global M&A jumped 63 per cent to $5.63tn (£4.26tn) while in Europe activity was almost 50 per cent up, to $1.26tn (£954m), driven in part by a boost of confidence among chief [...]
