Deutshe Bank mulls ditching EY as auditor following Wirecard scandal May 28, 2021 Deutshe Bank is inviting firms to compete for its 2020 audit just two years after hiring EY to replace KPMG, in a move that could see EY ditched in favour of another company. The chair of Germany’s biggest lender Paul Achleitner told shareholders that the company wants “to keep all its options open” when it [...]
Loyalty penalty on home and motor insurance to be scrapped May 28, 2021 Renewal quotes for home and motor insurance customers will soon not be more expensive than they would be for new customers, in a bid to tackle loyalty penalties in the insurance sector. Millions of home and motor insurance customers lose out if they renew repeatedly with their current providers, according to the city regulator. In [...]
John Lewis goes on senior hiring spree in push to modernise brand May 28, 2021 John Lewis has made three new senior hires to support its plans to transform and grow the business after a tough year. The new hires will focus on developing John Lewis’s online store, the retailer’s physical estates and branding. Steve Masterton will become director of online trade. He joins the partnership from Dunelm, where he [...]
Credit Suisse ‘bankrolled Gupta despite warnings’ from colleagues elsewhere at bank May 28, 2021 Executives at Credit Suisse ignored warnings from colleagues about troubled Sanjeev Gupta, pressing ahead with funnelling billions to his business despite others at the bank blacklisting the steel tycoon. The warnings from one set of executives did not stop others at Credit Suisse transferring $1.2bn of client funds to steel tycoon Sanjeev Gupta, Bloomberg first [...]
US shoppers behind Klarna’s recent platform transaction boom May 28, 2021 Swedish ‘buy now, pay later’ company Klarna has reported a jump in transactions using its platform in the January to March quarter, helped mainly by growth in the United States. Klarna’s gross merchandise volume (GMV) – the value of transactions made using its payment platform – nearly doubled to $18.9bn in the first quarter from $9.9bn a [...]
IPO: Lightweight and portable oxygen tank maker to list in London May 28, 2021 Belluscura, a medical device developer that focuses on lightweight and portable oxygen technology, will today debut on London’s AIM market. The company, which was established in the UK in 2015, expects to be worth nearly £51m following admission to the stock exchange. It has conditionally raised £17.5m via share allocation prior to the placing. Belluscura’s [...]
Promote auditors who challenge clients says think tank May 28, 2021 Auditors who challenge clients should be celebrated and promoted, according to a new report from think tank IPPR, in order to better serve society as a whole. A complete culture change is needed within the UK’s audit industry to ensure that public trust is fully restored, the think tank said in its latest report. Without [...]
Challengers turn their backs on ‘shared audits’ of the largest companies May 27, 2021 So-called ‘challenger’ audit firms BDO and Grant Thornton are reportedly considering not pitching for shared audits of FTSE 100 companies, in a move that could jeopardise the government’s plans to water down Big Four dominance. The two challengers are instead considering focusing on increasing the number of FTSE 250 companies they audit on a solo [...]
Sales at Pets at Home pass £1.4bn as Brits pick up furry companions May 27, 2021 Revenue at Pets at Home jumped nearly eight per cent in the last year, as coronavirus-led lockdowns persuaded more households to get a pet. Revenue at the pet care retailer jumped 7.9 per cent to £1.14bn in the group’s 2021 financial year. Retail revenue reached £1bn for the first time despite Covid-19 restrictions, and revenue [...]
Audit watchdog admits it was not up to the job amid major company collapse May 27, 2021 The boss of the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has admitted the audit regulator was asleep at the wheel following large scale business collapses that shook confidence in the sector. Sir Jon Thompson, chief executive of the FRC, said he agreed with criticism of the regulator following the collapse of Carillion and Patisserie Valerie. Speaking to [...]
