Visa to buy London payments firm Currencycloud for £700m July 22, 2021 Visa has inked a deal to buy London payments group Currencycloud in the latest move by a US buyer to swoop on the booming British tech sector. The financial services giant today said the deal builds on an existing partnership between the companies and values Currencycloud at £700m inclusive of cash and retention incentives. However, [...]
Lex Greensill was given ‘extraordinarily privileged’ access to government, finds report July 22, 2021 A Boris Johnson-sanctioned probe into the lobbying efforts of Greensill Capital has found its owner was given “extraordinarily privileged” access to the highest reaches of government. The report also critiqued the government’s handling of the UK’s lobbying system, which it said gives access to a “privileged few” like former Prime Minister and Greensill Capital adviser [...]
Starling Bank slims losses and eyes potential 2022 IPO July 22, 2021 British digital lender Starling Bank said it had chopped its losses by more than half and was on track for full-year profitability, as it eyes a potential float at the end of next year. Starling reported a loss of £23.3m in the 16 months to the end of March 2021 – less than half its [...]
The World To Come review – a passionate if familiar love story July 22, 2021 The early days of America provide the backdrop to this stripped-down drama, set in 19th century America. The daily routine of grieving mother Abigail (Katherine Waterston) is interrupted by the arrival of Tallie (Vanessa Kirby), a neighbour who comes for a visit. The pair strike up an instant friendship that turns to attraction, but their [...]
Barclays appoints Ingrid Hengster as Germany head July 22, 2021 Barclays announced the appointment of Ingrid Hengster as country chief executive for Germany and global chairman of investment banking. Hengster joins from KfW, the German state-owned investment and development bank, where she held the role of executive board member since 2014. “The almost eight years at KfW were very rewarding because I had the opportunity [...]
Government monitoring ‘concerning’ supermarket shortages caused by ‘pingdemic’ July 22, 2021 Business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng has said he is “monitoring” the growing supermarket shortages caused by workers being forced to self-isolate as Covid cases surge. Pictures of empty shelves circulated across social media last night, leading supermarkets to apologise for the Test and Trace-caused shortages. More than 600,000 people have been told to self-isolate by the [...]
UK telecoms firm Clearcomm snapped up by rival STL in £15.5m deal July 22, 2021 UK telecoms group Clearcomm has been acquired by Indian rival STL for £15.5m as global network providers race to roll out 5G and full-fibre broadband. STL and Clearcomm both offer network integration services, providing wired and wireless infrastructure for telcos, cloud companies and large businesses. Since its inception in 2009, Birmingham-based Clearcomm has grown to [...]
Night of The Kings is an inventive, hard-hitting prison drama July 22, 2021 The prison movie is an inexhaustible inspiration for filmmakers. Just when you think you’ve seen every permutation, a film comes along and shows you something different. Ivorian filmmaker Philippe Lacôte (2014’s Run) goes into the heart of an infamous location for his new story, Night of The Kings. We find ourselves The Ivory Coast’s notorious [...]
BoE deputy governor moves to quash inflation fears July 22, 2021 The deputy governor of monetary policy at the Bank of England moved to temper fears that the UK economy is facing a period of persistently higher inflation today. In a speech, Ben Broadbent said that he was “not convinced that the current inflation in retail goods prices should in and of itself mean higher inflation [...]
SMEs confident about recovery but frustrated by lack of financial backing July 22, 2021 Owners of small and medium-sized enterprises are feeling more optimistic than last month but are struggling to get financial backing, according to figures from the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA UK) and the Corporate Finance Network (CFN), shared with City A.M. today. The survey shows that 89 per cent of SME owners are trading [...]
