Shell mulls offshoring its legal eagles to cut costs June 6, 2016 Shell is considering offshoring its legal centre in a bid to cut costs and improve efficiencies, it was revealed today. "We are operating in the reality of a 'lower for longer' oil price environment and to remain competitive, Shell is taking essential steps towards building a more sustainable and resilient company," said Donny Ching, Shell's legal director. "Shell's [...]
BlackRock agrees to sell Singapore office spot to Qatar Investment Authority for $2.5bn June 6, 2016 BlackRock announced today that it had agreed to hand over the keys to an office complex in Singapore to sovereign wealth fund Qatar Investment Authority for $2.5bn (£1.7bn). Asia Square Tower 1 consists of 43-storeys of space and more than 1.25 million square feet of area that could be let out. Citibank, one of the building's most notable tenants, has been in [...]
Financial Reporting Council launches KPMG probe over additional services provided while it audited Ted Baker June 6, 2016 The accountancy watchdog has today announced an investigation into KPMG Audit over its handling of its additional services provided to Ted Baker. The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has said it will be examining how the big four firm complied with ethical standards relating to providing non-audit services while it was auditing the retailer. The periods concerned [...]
SMEs have a gloomy view of the economy, as uncertainty over the upcoming EU referendum vote and higher wage bills take their toll June 6, 2016 The summer weather has done little to boost SME owners' moods, with research out today showing that many have lost confidence in the economy. According to the study by Close Brothers, only one in five SMEs said they were confident that the economy could deliver a steady recovery, while more than a quarter said they were [...]
Employers are not sharing the caring, with only a third having policies in place to support working carers June 6, 2016 More and more people are taking on caring responsibilities, but you wouldn't know it if you walked into most offices, research out today has warned. According to a study by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) and Westfield Health, just a third (34 per cent) of employers have some sort of policy, whether verbal [...]
Seven things we’ve discovered so far this year about cybersecurity June 4, 2016 Next week, technology experts will flock to West London for Infosecurity Europe – one of the largest information security exhibitions. If you're going and are worried you'll run short of water cooler conversation topics to discuss with your fellow delegates, here's seven things that have come to light about cybersecurity so far this year: Cybersecurity is [...]
Lufthansa’s chief executive has this to say about M&A June 4, 2016 A protectionist attitude is putting the brakes on cross-boarder M&A activity in the airline industry, Lufthansa's chief executive has warned. Speaking at an event in Zurich today, Carsten Spohr added that he only saw regulators shifting towards more protectionism, not less. "To be honest I see protectionism around the world rising rather than more liberalisation," Reuters [...]
Why “failure to prevent” will fail to prevent fraud and money laundering June 4, 2016 Predictably, reaction to the Prime Minister’s proposal of a new failure to prevent economic crime offence has been mixed. The timing of recent announcement – in the wake of the Panama Papers scandal and just as Mr Cameron's anti-corruption summit kicked into gear – was not lost on some commentators. Others have welcomed the announcement, pointing to [...]
As Walmart trial runs deliveries with Uber, Lyft and Deliv, here’s XXXX times big businesses got in on the sharing economy June 4, 2016 NULL
