Facebook secures Afghan accounts as Taliban cements takeover August 20, 2021 Facebook has brought in new safety measures in response to concerns that the Taliban, who have taken over Afghanistan this week, could use social media to target and track individuals, according to reports. The social media giant has temporarily removed the ability for people to see or search the friends lists of accounts based in [...]
Vertu profits get an upgrade as used car market booms August 20, 2021 Car dealership chain Vertu Motors expects higher profits for the year than previously forecast as the secondhand car market continues to grow, the company said in a statement this morning. The announcement is the second profit upgrade made by the company in the space of a single month. Vertu’s profits for the year are now [...]
Ackman of Pershings to relaunch SPAC as damage control from investor lawsuit August 20, 2021 In a letter to the shareholders of the largest SPAC to ever hit the market, billionaire fund manager Bill Ackman said on Thursday he will pursue a relaunch of Pershings, following a lawsuit filed this week by an investor. The lawsuit against Pershing Square Holdings (PSTH) was filed by former US Securities and Exchange (SEC) [...]
Legal groups urge UK to help female judges and legal professionals in Afghanistan August 19, 2021 At least 250 female judges in Afghanistan face a “perilous” future, legal groups have said while urging the UK government to offer asylum to female judges and other legal professionals in the country which has been control of by the Taliban. According to the Lawyer Monthly, the Bar Council, Bar Human Rights Committee and Law [...]
Deloitte gives all 333,000 staff lessons on climate change August 19, 2021 All Deloitte employees will be given lessons as part of a climate change education programme over the next six months according to reports, as the auditing giant seeks to boost climate change literacy in its workforce. The “climate learning program” that all 333,000 of the auditor’s international staff will be sent on, has been created [...]
Mastercard faces £10bn class-action lawsuit in UK August 19, 2021 A UK court has approved the UK’s biggest class action lawsuit of over £10bn against global payments processor Mastercard on behalf of 46m consumers, according to reports. The previously rejected lawsuit was formally certified on Wednesday to go to trial by the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) in London. It will be the first mass claim [...]
Alibaba shares sink to record low as China regulations on tech continues August 19, 2021 Alibaba Group shares sank by 5.4 per cent to a record low in Hong Kong on Thursday, following the latest round of regulations on Chinese tech giants by Beijing. The shares fell after China reportedly said it was looking at separate and new regulatory proposals including heightening oversight of the live streaming industry and ensuring the [...]
Royal London insurance moves head office to EightyFen in heart of the City August 19, 2021 Mutual life insurance company Royal London has this morning announced it has taken up 55,000 sq ft of office space at 80 Fenchurch Street for its new headquarters in the City. The largest mutual life insurance company in the UK, with assets under management of £153bn, will enjoy panoramic views across London from the top [...]
John Lewis launches investment products as it looks beyond retail for revenue August 19, 2021 John Lewis has today launched investment products for the first time ever, as the retailer ramps up its plans to find revenue streams in other sectors. Entering the investments market is, the company said in a statement, part of its longer term ambition for 40 per cent of the company’s profits to come from outside [...]
Home office hazards: Shoffices and pizza oven related fires jumped during lockdown August 18, 2021 Insurer Zurich has warned that outbuilding fires – in sheds, garages and conservatories – rose by 16 per cent last year when national lockdowns resulted in a surge in people turning their sheds into offices, or ‘shoffices’. New data revealed through freedom of information requests by insurer Zurich to UK fire authorities have shown that [...]
