British Business Bank seeds new £2.5bn patient capital investment fund with £400m June 13, 2018 The British Business Bank (BBB) has today launched a £2.5bn programme with £400m of seed capital as part of an effort to match the US in creating the next generation of "unicorn" firms. The newly launched British Patient Capital (BCP) will be a subsidiary of the government-owned BBB, with the aim of providing long-term finance [...]
Ex-Goldman investment manager plans to raise £100m in new Indian equities investment trust Ashoka June 12, 2018 A former top investment manager at Goldman Sachs plans to raise £100m on London’s stock market to invest in companies focused on India. Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust today announced its intention to launch its initial public offering on London’s main market, with a view to eventually investing in between 20 and 40 stocks. The [...]
HSBC to invest up to $17bn in expansion and tech as it swings to ‘growth mode’ June 11, 2018 HSBC will invest as much as $17bn (£12.7bn) in expanding its network and adopting new technology as it puts a period of restructuring behind it, its chief executive announced today. The UK's largest bank by assets will invest between $15bn and $17bn "primarily in growth and technology", chief executive John Flint said in an announcement. [...]
City watchdog Andrew Bailey defends controversial rules to clear way for Saudi Aramco London listing June 11, 2018 The top financial watchdog has split the City with controversial changes to listing rules which could allow Saudi Aramco to list in London, but Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) boss Andrew Bailey insists the reforms will raise standards. From July the regulator will create a new category with less strict requirements within its “premium” rules for [...]
Higher oil prices to boost UK inflation with ECB and Federal Reserve in tightening mood June 10, 2018 Higher oil prices are expected to cause a rebound in UK inflation, adding to expectations that the Bank of England will carry out the rate hike it delayed in May in the coming months. Consumer price index inflation will bounce back in May to a yearly rate of 2.6 per cent in data published on [...]
Firms to have to justify pay gap between bosses and workers June 10, 2018 Listed British firms are to be forced to publish and "justify" the pay difference between their chief executives and the rest of their staff. The government will introduce new laws to bring forward the reforms, which will come into force for firms with more than 250 employees from 1 January 2019, with reporting to start [...]
TSB denies boss Paul Pester misled MPs over extent of computer issues June 10, 2018 TSB has denied that its chief executive Paul Pester misled MPs over the extent of a crippling computer meltdown at the bank, after reports that he had seen evidence contradicting his statements to a parliamentary committee. The bank called in IT giants IBM after its migration to new computer systems in April went disastrously wrong, [...]
Top City regulator Andrew Bailey criticises TSB and chief executive Paul Pester following IT meltdown June 6, 2018 Top City watchdog Andrew Bailey has criticised TSB and its chief executive for poor communication following the IT meltdown which left thousands of customers without access to their accounts for weeks. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) boss wrote that the regulator is “dissatisfied with TSB’s communications with its customers”. TSB’s “poor” communications could “reduce trust [...]
City watchdog to reveal decision on Saudi Aramco listing category – six months late June 3, 2018 The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) will this week unveil its decision on plans to offer a new listing category in a bid to attract Saudi’s massive oil company Aramco to list in the UK – six months later than initially planned. The City watchdog will announce its response to a consultation on a “premium listing” [...]
Financial Conduct Authority ups scrutiny on senior manager appointments May 29, 2018 The City watchdog increased its scrutiny of the appointment of senior managers at financial services firms last year as part of its efforts to tighten up its regulatory supervision, according to data to be published today. The number of vetting interviews by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) rose by a third in 2017 to reach [...]