Deutsche Bank ‘in talks to sell IT unit’ as cost-cutting continues October 22, 2020 Deutsche Bank is reportedly in talks to sell a IT services unit to Tata Consulting Services (TCS), one of Asia’s biggest software exporters, as the lender continues a cost-cutting programme. Talks about the sale of Bonn-based Postbank Systems to TCS are expected to result in a deal for the division by the end of the [...]
Where is the Institutional Money? October 22, 2020 For over a decade now, we have seen the growth and development of digital assets. Some have been highly successful in terms of increasing their value and use (for example Bitcoin and Ethereum) whilst many have been less successful. What is clear is the lack of institutional capital, compared to other tradable assets, that has [...]
Countrywide shareholder to oppose £90m lifeline from private equity investor October 22, 2020 Estate agent chain Countrywide (LON: CWD) has secured a £90m lifeline from private equity firm Alchemy in an “urgent” bid to reduce debt, however a significant shareholder is planning to oppose the deal. The firm, which owns Bairstow Eves and Hamptons International, said it is at a “critical inflection point” and is in “urgent need [...]
Rishi Sunak extends support to businesses facing Tier 2 restrictions October 22, 2020 The government has expanded its job support scheme for businesses facing Tier 2 restrictions, with Rishi Sunak announcing that the government will pay significantly more of companies’ wage bills under the new post-furlough scheme. Businesses will only need to pay five per cent of workers’ unworked hours under the new part-time Jobs Support Scheme instead [...]
CBI: Decline in UK manufacturing slowed in October but activity still weak October 22, 2020 UK manufacturing activity continued to decline in the three months October but fell at their slowest pace since March despite a resurgence in coronavirus cases, a new survey showed. Output dropped in 10 of the 17 manufacturing sub-sectors monitored by the CBI’s industrial trends survey, with the aerospace sector leading the drop as the pandemic [...]
Breaking: Test and trace system reaches fewer than six in ten ‘close contacts’ October 22, 2020 Breaking: Test and trace system reaches fewer than six in ten 'close contacts'
Donald Trump and Barack Obama lash out at each other in rival election rallies October 22, 2020 Barack Obama and Donald Trump have mounted vicious attacks on each other last night at opposing rallies as polling day draws closer. Obama, who was speaking at a Joe Biden drive-in rally in Philadelphia, called Trump a “crazy uncle”, a peddler of conspiracy theories and someone who is eroding democracy in the US. The President, [...]
Payouts from government’s Covid-19 lending programmes hit £62bn October 22, 2020 The total value of loans paid out under the government’s coronavirus business lending schemes hit almost £62bn last week, new data showed. UK banks had lent a total of £61.9bn to businesses struggling with the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic as of 18 October, up from £57.3bn the previous month, according to figures from the [...]
Shaftesbury taps investors for £300m as pandemic batters West End October 22, 2020 West End landlord Shaftesbury will tap investors for £300m amid a sharp downturn in central London footfall during the coronavirus pandemic. The property firm announced today that it intends to raise around £297m through a discounted offer of new shares, with the potential to raise £307m dependent on investor appetite. Shaftesbury, which owns 16 acres [...]
JP Morgan strategists: Markets desperate for more stimulus at US election October 22, 2020 The markets want a decisive outcome from the 3 November US presidential election that will lead to big near-term fiscal stimulus, which the country’s economy “really needs”, strategists at JP Morgan Asset Management have said. Karen Ward, the London-based firm’s chief market strategist for Europe, said investors were now seeing the election in a “completely [...]