Watchdog slaps Lloyds with legal demands over PPI failures October 4, 2018 The UK’s competition watchdog has handed Lloyds legal directions after the lender failed to meet its obligations around managing accounts with payment protection insurance (PPI), the policy at the centre of a huge mis-selling scandal. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has called on the lender to “put effective systems and procedures in place” after it [...]
Air France–KLM looks at blockchain to cut costs for flyers October 4, 2018 Air France–KLM has announced a push into the blockchain-based technology to cut prices and offer personalised travel packages for customers. The Franco-Dutch airline company has partnered with Winding Tree, a blockchain specialist, to look at how new technology can help it cut out middlemen in its operations. The airline group will test Winding Tree’s technology, [...]
Here’s how business groups have reacted to Theresa May’s conference speech October 3, 2018 Prime Minister Theresa May used her conference speech today to attack Labour’s plans on the economy and slap down her Conservative party rivals – saying austerity was “over” and promising to fix the “broken” housing market. Business groups have been keenly awaiting May’s speech, as she fights off rebellions from her own MPs and attempts [...]
Mystery banker’s wife loses anti-corruption order appeal in victory for National Crime Agency October 3, 2018 The high-rolling wife of an anonymous banker has been defeated in her push to overturn efforts by the National Crime Agency (NCA) to make her reveal how she was able to afford properties in Britain worth £22m. A High Court judge overturned an attempt by the woman, identified as Mrs A, to block the NCA’s [...]
Head of KPMG South Africa steps down after one year, following corruption scandal October 3, 2018 KPMG South Africa said today it was searching for a new chief executive from outside the company, after its current boss stepped down after just 12 months in the role. The professional services firm has seen its reputation in the country devastated by its involvement in a series of corruption scandals, which have seen it [...]
City banker nabbed for M&A role at $320bn Qatari state fund October 2, 2018 Qatar’s largest sovereign wealth fund has grabbed a top City of London banker to run its deal-related activities worldwide, as it moves to expand a $320bn (£246.6bn) portfolio that includes the single-largest stake in supermarket Sainsbury’s, Sky News reported. Sky said Ken McLaren, currently a managing director at Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BAML), will [...]
Foreign secretary Jeremy Hunt backpedals on ‘Soviet prison’ comments about EU October 2, 2018 Jeremy Hunt, the foreign secretary, has backtracked on comments he made about the European Union in which he compared the group to the Soviet Union. Hunt provoked condemnation and mockery on Sunday, after he said the EU risked becoming like a Soviet “prison” because of its negotiation stance on Britain’s exit from the EU. Read [...]
PwC global chair says firm ‘cannot rest on laurels’ as global revenues pass $40bn October 2, 2018 The global chairman of PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) has said audit remains “at the heart of what we do”, after global revenues at the professional services giant rose above $40bn (£30.66bn) for the first time despite a series of accounting scandals. Total revenue across PwC’s international network of firms hit $41.3bn, a seven per cent rise in [...]
Campbell Soup can serve you better, hedgie tells investors October 1, 2018 Billionaire investor Daniel Loeb is using his activist hedge fund to woo Campbell Soup shareholders, saying the “iconic asset” was an attractive prospect for takeover and claiming it could fetch $58 (£44.50) per share. Loeb’s Third Point fund is pushing to replace all the food company’s directors, who it said had presided over “tenure of [...]
General Electric replaces chief executive as it takes $23bn charge on its power business October 1, 2018 The boss of General Electric (GE), one of America’s best-known companies, has been replaced after just 14 months on the job, after the company took a $23bn (£17.6bn) hit on its struggling power business. The industrial giant said John Flannery would be replaced by Larry Culp, former chief executive of manufacturing group Danaher, as it revealed the [...]