Saudi Aramco to pay out $75bn dividend as it courts investors ahead of IPO September 30, 2019 Saudi Aramco has said it plans to pay a base dividend of $75bn (£61bn) in 2020 as it gears up for its highly-anticipated public float. Read more: JP Morgan set to pip rivals for Saudi Aramco mega-float The Saudi Arabian state oil giant has been courting potential investors for the initial public offering (IPO), from [...]
UK homebuyers turned off by ‘characterless’ new-builds September 30, 2019 Prospective buyers have been deterred from purchasing new-build homes in the UK because they are “unattractive” and “devoid of character”. Roughly half of homebuyers and property investors believe new-builds are usually unattractive, while 63 per cent consider them to lack distinctive features, according to a new survey. Read more: Days of soaring London house prices [...]
Mobile shopping platform Rezolve secures bumper deal with Samsung September 30, 2019 Mobile shopping platform Rezolve has secured a deal with Samsung to make its technology available on the South Korean firm’s smartphones. The London-based tech startup said its product will be embedded directly into Samsung’s Bixby Vision software and will be available in the US later this year. Read more: Samsung prepares to release new foldable [...]
Axel Springer cuts revenue guidance as it announces restructuring plan September 30, 2019 German media giant Axel Springer has warned it expects a decline in full-year revenue and profit, as it unveiled plans to restructure its news media division. The firm, which owns a string of news brands including Business Insider, said revenue will decline in the low to mid single-digit range, while adjusted earnings before interest, tax, [...]
Wework confirms it will withdraw IPO filing amid investor apathy September 30, 2019 Wework today confirmed it will withdraw its initial public offering (IPO) filing after it was forced to push back plans for its troubled float. Read more: Wework sells former CEO Adam Neumann’s $60m private jet The coworking firm last week announced that Adam Neumann would step down as chief executive following a frosty reception from [...]
Jamie Oliver bags £5.2m payday despite restaurant chain collapse September 30, 2019 Jamie Oliver took home £5.2m last year as his business empire suffered a slump in profit following the collapse of his restaurant chain. The chef’s food and media business increased sales to £43.5m in the year to December 2018, but pre-tax profit almost halved to £7.8m. Read more: SSP buys three Jamie Oliver restaurants saving [...]
One in three UK businesses has no Brexit plan in place as Halloween deadline looms September 30, 2019 A senior minister yesterday suggested the UK may use EU law in order to deliver Brexit by Halloween. Confirming revelations in City A.M., foreign secretary Dominic Raab told the Mail on Sunday that EU law supersedes UK law and so in theory the 31 October departure date, enshrined in European law, would be unaffected by [...]
Trying to spot phishing emails ‘like gambling on roulette’, report finds September 30, 2019 Fraudulent emails pose the greatest cyber threat to businesses, as the chances of an employee spotting one are extremely slim, according to a report published today. Cybersecurity wonks said that employees’ inability to identify malicious messages rendered email the most vulnerable access point for most companies. Read more: Hackers ‘tried to steal Airbus secrets’ in [...]
Booze budgets: Brits splash the cash on nights out September 30, 2019 The average amount of money spent on UK nights out has surged in the last year, as boozy Brits refuse to let political uncertainty rain on their parade. Profligate partygoers now spend just over £70 on average during a night out, up more than 25 per cent year-on-year, according to the latest Deltic Night Index. [...]
Philip Green’s Miss Selfridge posts £17.5m loss as sales slump September 29, 2019 Sir Philip Green’s Miss Selfridge chain fell to a loss of £17.5m last year as the retailer suffered a decline in sales and a writedown in the value of loss-making stores. The womenswear chain booked sales of £102m in the year to 1 September 2018, down more than 15 per cent on the previous 12 [...]