Pub group Marston’s returns to profitability as sales bounce back to pre-Covid levels May 18, 2022 Pub group Marston’s today announced it has returned to profit after sales at its 1,482 pubs bounced back to 97 per cent of pre-pandemic levels. The pub and hotel operator posted profits of £39.9m for the 26 weeks running up to 2 April 2022, compared to a £57.2m loss over the same period in 2021. [...]
TBC Bank’s profits soar as Georgia’s economy booms May 18, 2022 Georgia’s TBC Bank today said its pre-tax profits are up 45.8 per cent on last year on the back of fast paced growth in the Georgian economy. The FTSE 250 bank said Georgia’s economy had rebounded quickly from the pandemic to achieve annual growth of 10.4 per cent in 2021 following a 6.8 per cent [...]
Coalition of football clubs file lawsuit against insurers in wake of landmark Axa ruling May 17, 2022 A coalition of football clubs have filed a multi-party lawsuit against six major insurers seeking a larger payout for money lost during Covid-19, after the UK’s Supreme Court said businesses are allowed to reclaim losses suffered due to the impacts of the pandemic. A consortium of 20 separate claimants – including Arsenal, Liverpool, and Aston [...]
Allianz told to pay $6bn after SEC charges three execs with fraud over Structured Alpha funds scandal May 17, 2022 The US financial watchdog has told German financial services behemoth Allianz to pay $6bn (£4.8bn) after charging three of its senior executives with fraud in relation to the $11bn collapse of the firm’s Structured Alpha funds. Allianz agreed to pay $1bn to the US Securities and Exchanges Commission (SEC) and a further $5bn to investors, [...]
Binance bulks up legal team as crypto firm faces mounting regulatory scrutiny May 17, 2022 The world’s biggest crypto exchange, Binance, is seeking to bulk up its legal team by hiring more than 30 lawyers across Europe, Asia, and the Americas. The Cayman Islands headquartered firm posted more than 30 openings for legal professionals, including for six positions in London. The job ads come as the crypto industry faces mounting [...]
UK’s biggest phone companies colluded to bankrupt Phones 4U, High Court hears May 17, 2022 The UK’s major telecoms companies took part in a conspiracy to put Phones 4U’s out of business, lawyers acting on behalf of the bankrupt retailer told a High Court. Executives at five major phone companies – EE, Deutsche Telekom, Orange, Vodafone, and Telefonica – unlawfully “colluded” to drive Phones4U into administration in a bid to [...]
KPMG hires CryptoUK exec to boost digital assets and Web3 offerings May 17, 2022 KPMG has hired CryptoUK exec Ian Taylor to lead the Big Four accountancy firm’s crypto and digital assets team, in line with plans to strengthen its crypto offering. The firm said the former executive director of the UK’s crypto industry trade body will continue to have an advisory role at CryptoUK alongside his new position [...]
Victorian Plumbing claims victory after posting 67 per cent drop in earnings May 17, 2022 Online bathroom store Victorian Plumbing today said it had successfully captured a larger slice of the bathroom products market, after noting that its sales are now 39 per cent higher than before the pandemic. The Skelmersdale firm said its adjusted earnings were 67 per cent lower than last year and 24 per cent lower than [...]
J2O maker Britvic ups dividend and vows to buy back £75m worth of shares as pre-tax profits soar May 17, 2022 Soft drinks conglomerate Britvic today announced plans to launch a £75m share buyback scheme and upped its dividend by 20 per cent, after posting “strong” results for the six months running up to 31 March 2022. The Tango and J2O maker said its pre-tax profits increased 48.7 per cent to £45.8m, after its revenues jumped [...]
Google and DeepMind face class action lawsuit over patient data deal with London hospital May 16, 2022 London law firm Mishcon de Reya is bringing forward a major class action lawsuit against artificial intelligence (AI) firm DeepMind and its sister company Google over claims the two firms misused UK patients’ medical records while working with the Royal Free Hospital. The lawsuit, filed to the High Court on behalf of 1.6m individuals, comes [...]
