IG Group sees the positive in French watchdog push back, shortly after UK clamps down on spreadbetting market January 9, 2017 IG Group today offered its support to the French watchdog's latest efforts to clampdown on the spreadbetting market. In a statement, the spreadbetting firm said the latest raft of rules from Autorite des Marches Financiers (AMF) "will provide substantial protection for consumers and greatly improve standards in the sector". AMF recently confirmed new restrictions on electronic marketing of contract [...]
KPMG and BDO among group of consultants set to publish New Year’s resolutions January 9, 2017 By this point in January, many are already lamenting their failed efforts to stick to their New Year's diet, hit the gym every morning or stay away from the sauce. Not to be deterred, City A.M. has learnt a group of well-known names in consultancy are set to publicly pledge their resolutions for the new year [...]
Feeling good: Optimism among UK businesses reaches highest level in 15 months January 9, 2017 Optimism among UK businesses reached its highest level in 15 months in December, figures released today show, as firms got back into the swing of things after the initial referendum fallout. The optimism index compiled by professional services firm BDO, which measures how firms think their order books will grow over the next six months, increased [...]
Libor trio to face confiscation orders next month, as hearing scheduled to begin in February January 8, 2017 Three ex-Barclays bankers who were found guilty last year of Libor-rigging offences now face being stripped of their property when they return to court again next month. When they were sentenced last July, it was also announced that Jonathan Mathew, Jay Merchant and Alex Pabon would face a confiscation hearing at a later date. City A.M. [...]
Lloyds share sell off set to gain pace tomorrow January 8, 2017 The government is set to ditch another £500m worth of its stake in Lloyds, with the next sale of its shares expected to be announced as early as tomorrow. In one of his earliest announcements as chancellor, Philip Hammond revealed last October that the government was now prepared to sell its remaining stake in the lender. [...]
White collar crime crackdown expected in 2017, as UK prosecutors hone in on Bribery Act January 8, 2017 This year will see renewed efforts on clamping down on white collar crime, particularly as prosecutors chase convictions under the Bribery Act, experts have told City A.M. Prosecutions for bribery offences have been picking up pace ever since the Bribery Act 2010 came into force in 2011. Last year marked the first time a company was sentenced [...]
Upbeat banking earnings bonanza predicted this week, as analysts forecast revenue bump for JP Morgan January 8, 2017 All eyes will be on Wall Street later this week, as the US' banking behemoths get set to reveal their fourth quarter, and latest full-year, results. JP Morgan, Wells Fargo and Bank of America are scheduled to be the first out of the gate, as the trio are due to deliver their results on Friday 13 [...]
Challenger bank Oaknorth expands its team with three key hires January 5, 2017 It's only a few days into 2017, but Oaknorth has already further expanded its team, making three key hires. City A.M. has learnt that the challenger bank has appointed Georgy Naydenov and Stuart Blair as debt finance directors, and David Webley joins as a credit director. Industry veteran Webley has previously spent 25 years at Barclays and was most recently [...]
Calls for better governance at Sports Direct heighten, after Mike Ashley defies the will of the company’s other shareholders January 5, 2017 Sports Direct has today sparked more ire over the state of its corporate governance, including calls for a rethink on how listed firms are overseen The comments come after a second vote in less than half a year on whether to keep Keith Hellawell as chairman was waved through at the company's general meeting, as chief [...]
The UK boosted its productivity potential last year, but Brexit could push it back down again January 5, 2017 The UK's comparative potential for productivity grew last year, but a bad Brexit deal could see it slip back down the rankings, research released today has found. The country crept up from 14th to 13th place in KPMG's Variables for Sustained Growth (VSG) Index, which rates the productivity potential in different countries. The final VSG score [...]
