Big Four: EY, Deloitte, KPMG, and PwC step on law firms’ toes increasing legal revenue to £1.25bn February 15, 2023 The Big Four accounting firms – EY, Deloitte, KPMG, and PwC – are capturing an ever-larger share of the global market for legal services. The accounting giants are rapidly expanding their legal businesses, in boosting their own sales and taking work away from traditional firms, the research from Said Business School shows. The world’s four [...]
Legal tech revolution: Firms invest in cost saving AI tools like ChatGPT to improve profitability February 15, 2023 Law firms are continuing to invest in cost-saving technologies, including artificial intelligence driven tools like ChatGPT, in seeking to stave off falling profitability. A sharp drop in M&A deals has hit US law firms’ profitability, wiping out the majority of all gains they made during Covid, the research from Thomson Reuters shows. US law firms [...]
Dunelm’s profits dip as end of home improvement boom and high inflation eats into margins February 15, 2023 Homewares retailer Dunelm today said its profits have dipped since the pandemic due to soaring inflation and the end of the Covid house improvement boom. The Leicestershire firm said higher prices and slower sales had caused its pre-tax profits to drop by 16.6 per cent to £117.4m. Dunelm’s results come as the amount of [...]
Hargreaves Lansdown pledges to hike dividend after profit grew by 30 per cent despite market turbulence February 15, 2023 Investment platform Hargreaves Lansdown today pledged to hike its dividend after it successfully boosted its profits in the face of widespread market turbulence. The online trading platform, which is known for its index fund offerings, said it grew its revenues by a fifth (20 per cent) over the final six months of 2022 despite the [...]
Analysis: Audit watchdog faces catch-22 in hunt for new chief February 15, 2023 Britain’s audit watchdog is on the hunt for a new chief executive who can face down the Big Four accounting firms after Jon Thompson announced last week he would leave the post to lead the grossly delayed HS2 project. But in choosing a new boss, the newly-merged Department for Business and Trade has a difficult [...]
Tui reduces loss to £135m but warns of threat posed by soaring fuel prices and cost-of-living crisis February 14, 2023 Travel firm Tui has posted a €153m (£135m) loss for the final three months of 2022 as the German company warned of potentially tougher times to come. The Hanover-based firm said the cost-of-living crisis could see demand for its holidays to fall as cash-strapped Europeans cancel trips abroad. Tui warned that the war in Ukraine [...]
Coca-Cola bottling firm posts ‘record’ revenue despite exit from Russia and energy crisis eating into profits February 14, 2023 Coca-Cola’s bottling business today posted “record” results after bolstering its revenues through price increases, after its exit from Russia ate into profits. Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company (HBC), which owns the bottling rights for Coca-Cola, saw its reported revenues surge 28.3 per cent to €9.2bn (£8.1bn). The uptick in revenues came as Coca-Cola HBC’s profits were [...]
Liberty Global buys five per cent stake in Vodafone claiming shares are undervalued February 13, 2023 Telecoms giant Liberty Global has bought an almost five per cent stake in Vodafone after claiming shares in the troubled firm are undervalued. Liberty’s purchase of a 4.92 per cent stake in Vodafone comes as a vote of confidence in the British company, as it struggles to satisfy investors. The phone operator’s share price [...]
MJ Hudson: EY quits as auditor after it ‘lost trust and confidence’ in firm’s management February 13, 2023 EY has resigned as MJ Hudson’s auditor after losing trust in the company’s ability to “provide us with accurate and reliable information for audit”. The embattled asset manager received the news in a letter from the Big Four accountancy firm this morning in which EY said it would be resigning with immediate effect. In it’s [...]
Double stamp duty surcharge for overseas buyers to ‘level’ UK property market for locals, urges lobby group February 13, 2023 The UK government should double the stamp duty surcharge overseas buyers must pay when purchasing a property in England, an industry lobby group has said. The National Association of Property Buyers (NAPB) said doubling the stamp duty surcharge would “level the playing field” amid an influx of “wealthy foreign buyers”. Under current rules, overseas buyers [...]
