‘Open economy’ backers Fabric Ventures announces $130m fund July 29, 2021 A venture manager that backs ‘open economy’ founders, has today announced a new 2021 fund worth $130m (£93m) – the biggest of its type in Europe. The fund is backed by $30m from the European Investment Fund (EIF) and its partners include Niklas Zennstrom’s venture firm Atomico, Mike Novogratz’s Galaxy Digital, DCG and the founders [...]
Astrazeneca mulls offloading Covid vaccines unit even as total revenues soar above $15bn July 29, 2021 UK-listed Covid vaccine maker Astrazeneca today admitted it’s considering offloading its vaccines unit even as it cheered a 23 per cent revenue rise to $15.5bn for the first half of 2021 – boosted in part by orders for the preventative measure. A senior executive confirmed to Reuters that it is reviewing the future of the [...]
The FCA is revamping itself to be more “assertive” July 29, 2021 The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has proposed changes to streamline its decision-making processes, in a bid to make it more efficient. The financial watchdog said discussions have been held about moving some decision-making responsibility from its Regulatory Decisions Committee (RDC) to its Authorisations, Supervision and Enforcement divisions instead, in an announcement today. The RDC, a committee of [...]
Pupil barristers down by almost a third in 30 years July 29, 2021 The number of pupils for the bar has declined by almost 30 per cent since 1990, according to new research published by the Bar Standards Board (BSB) this week. The number of graduates starting pupillage in 2020 was 542, representing a fall of 28 per cent from 757 in 1991, according to the regulatory body. [...]
KPMG may rebuild restructuring arm one year after selling it for over £350m July 29, 2021 KPMG is reportedly creating a new division to advise on corporate restructurings, less than a year after it sold its UK insolvency advisory business for over £350m. The big four auditor made the move as a result of new competition laws which made achieving profits from its non-auditing services harder, according to the report in [...]
HSBC accused of ‘blatant’ forex fraud by former client July 29, 2021 HSBC currency traders in London have been accused of routinely fronting run client orders for extra profits as part of a “blatant and indefensible” fraud by investment manager ECU lawyers. The closing statement comments by lawyers for ECU, which is suing HSBC for currency trades made over 15 years ago, marked the end of a [...]
Smith & Nephew revenues grew by almost 50 per cent since last quarter July 29, 2021 Smith & Nephew revenues have soared as covid-19 restrictions eased and levels of elective surgery returned towards normal in many markets. The British medical technology firm reported revenues of $1.3bn in its second quarter, up 48.2 per cent and compared with $901m for the same period last year. As a result Smith & Nephew also [...]
US law firms in the UK raise bonuses in battle for staff July 28, 2021 UK legal companies have been forced into a bidding war for junior associates employed by top-tier US firms. Top US law firm Goodwin Procter is offering sign-on bonuses to its London staff worth up to £36,000, according to a recruiter, City A.M. understands. Last week Slaughter and May announced that it would increase pay for [...]
Exclusive: Islamic fintech founder Junaid Wahedna on why the UK market is firmly on his radar July 28, 2021 The market for Islamic fintech is growing globally, and in the UK. Last month the Boubyan Bank Group announced that the world’s first Islamic international digital bank will be launched in the UK. The global Islamic fintech market is estimated to reach $128bn by 2025, a 161 per cent increase from 2020’s figure, according to [...]
The rise in house prices slows after stamp duty holiday ends July 28, 2021 Property prices have continued to rise but at a slower pace since the stamp duty holiday came to an end, according to the Nationwide HPI report for July. Annual house price growth slowed to 10.5 per cent in July, from the 17-year high of 13.4 per cent recorded the previous month. In month-on-month terms, house [...]