A stroke of genius: How to get a loan by securing against art November 30, 2017 The world was stunned earlier this month when a 500-year-old Leonardo da Vinci painting smashed the world record by fetching $450m at auction. This figure might sound absurd, but understanding the multitude of factors that determine the value of art will remain a mystery to many of us. “Art is very personal,” says Freya [...]
Avoiding the financial perils of divorce November 29, 2017 If your marriage has broken down, the emotional strain can take its toll. But splitting your finances can make the divorce process a lot tougher. Last year, the number of divorces among opposite sex couples increased by 5.8 per cent compared to 2015, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics. But worryingly, [...]
Staying afloat: What the string of shelved IPOs means for investors November 28, 2017 It takes a brave business leader to list their company on a public stock exchange, and while the success of an IPO is largely based on the firm’s underlying fundamentals, it’s also a delicate act of timing. This month, we’ve seen a string of British companies shelve their plans to float, including the likes of [...]
How the Budget could affect your personal finances, and what you should do if it does November 22, 2017 Philip Hammond hasn’t got it easy. Putting a Budget together is difficult at the best of times, but with Brexit looming large over the UK, producing a financial plan for our economy is now a hell of a lot harder. In such an uncertain time, how can Hammond hope to offer the stability the [...]
Empowering the world: How you can make money through improving lives November 16, 2017 In the not-so-distant past, ethical investing was a mere speck on the horizon, barely visible beyond the sea of “traditional” investment opportunities. But there’s a shift happening – a change in mindset which is inciting us to be more conscious of where we put our money. Initiatives like Good Money Week have been raising awareness [...]
Want to be a pension millionaire? Here’s when you can stop saving November 15, 2017 There seems to be no end to the flurry of people telling us to pile as much money into our pension pots as possible. And while it’s crucial that we all make an effort to save for retirement, high earners need to be conscious that they could get slapped with a hefty tax bill [...]
A brave new banking world: How computer science shaped this company November 8, 2017 When I spot Anne Boden across the coffee shop, she beams at me. Even before she’s said a word, I immediately warm to her – here’s a woman who has spent 30 years working for the big banks, and yet she seems far removed from the stereotypical personalities you associate with the cutthroat finance [...]
The trials and tribulations of tapping new tech November 7, 2017 "Neither Redbox nor Netflix are even on the radar screen in terms of competition.” Those are the words of Jim Keyes, the former chief executive of video rental giant Blockbuster back in 2008. Just five years after Keyes made that statement, Blockbuster went bust, swallowed whole by the mighty online streaming service that is Netflix. [...]
No monkey business: What the finance industry can learn by going back to basics November 2, 2017 There's a lot we can learn from our closest relatives. And no, I’m not talking about human relatives. I’m talking about those in the animal kingdom: monkeys. One thing monkeys can teach us about humankind is our predisposition to gamble. You’re probably wondering when you last saw a monkey in Paddy Power. And since when [...]
Cohabiting couples: Don’t get caught out November 1, 2017 As fewer couples choose to tie the knot, it’s clear that marriage is no longer widely seen as the be-all-and-end-all to a relationship. Instead, many couples are opting for the cohabitation route – as sexy as that sounds. Figures from insurance giant Zurich estimate that there are more than 400,000 cohabiting families in London alone. [...]
