By: Maria Ward-Brennan

Professional Services Editor Maria Ward-Brennan is the Professional Services Editor at City AM, focused on law, Big Four, and other management and accounting consulting firms. She was previously a litigation reporter at The Lawyer. Contact her via email at maria.ward-brennan@cityam.com or X (Twitter) @MariaW_B.

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FTSE 100 Live: Stocks drop as oil returns to near $100 after tankers attacked

March 12, 2026

Good morning and welcome back to the City AM liveblog. The price of oil shot back above triple digits this morning, rising as much as nine per cent in Asian trading following the news two tankers were struck in the Gulf. An Iraqi news agency broke the news that 38 crew members have been rescued [...]
Closed shop? Not for long: How new laws are opening doors for trade unions

March 12, 2026

The first wave of the Employment Rights Act hit the statute books last month, signalling a potential end to the decades-long decline of UK trade unions, but businesses are already feeling the turbulence, triggering a surge of work for City employment lawyers. The Employment Rights Act has caused turmoil in businesses, not just because of [...]
Reeves’ £1.2bn consultancy savings plan in doubt, watchdog warns

March 11, 2026

Despite Rachel Reeves’ focus on cutting government spending on external consultancy services, a damning report stated that the government is unable to set meaningful targets to reduce its reliance on external firms. The UK government has said it wants to put an immediate stop to all non-essential consultancy spending and halve consultancy spending in future [...]
Robert Walters ditches dividend after swinging to loss

March 11, 2026

Robert Walters has ditched its final dividend after the recruitment firm’s bottom line took a major hit amid a cautious global sentiment around hiring. Revenue at the London-listed firm fell 12 per cent to £781.1m over the 2025 financial year – a drop from £892.1m. The group reported an operating loss of £14.9m, reversing a [...]
Crispin Odey threatened to ‘shut down’ fund if board tried to oust him

March 9, 2026

Crispin Odey threatened to “shut down” his eponymous hedge fund if he was dismissed by its board or it proceeded with investigations into his alleged misconduct against his wishes, a court will be told. Disgraced financier Odey faces the City watchdog at the High Court this week as he seeks to overturn a ruling that [...]
FTSE 100 Live: US stocks sink on open; Iran warns oil price could hit $200

March 9, 2026

Good morning and welcome back to the City AM liveblog. The chaos in global markets of last following the breakout of conflict in the Middle East is poised to continue as tensions in the Gulf showed no sign of slowing down over the weekend. The price of oil notched its highest gains in a single [...]
Crispin Odey set for high-stakes legal showdown with the FCA

March 9, 2026

Millionaire fund manager Crispin Odey is set to face the City watchdogs for a three-week trial as he aims to challenge his £1.8m fine and ban from working in the financial services industry. After a series of historical sexual assault allegations that were made against Odey, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) slapped him with a hefty [...]
‘Patronising gibberish’ – Top Tory slams Labour’s ‘masculine’ job ad crackdown

March 5, 2026

Labour has been criticised for issuing new guidance that warns employers against using ‘masculine’ language in job descriptions. The Office for Equality and Opportunity’s new guidance, published on Wednesday, suggests that businesses swap ‘aggressive character traits’ for more neutral, behaviour-based criteria. The document urges businesses to use neutral language and titles, including “avoid terms associated [...]
War in Iran sparks professional services remote work boom in Gulf

March 5, 2026

Professional service giants have triggered emergency business continuity plans, shifting hundreds of staff to remote work across the UAE, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia amid deepening conflict in the Middle East. Since Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu’s surprise attack on Tehran in the early hours of Saturday morning, Iran has retaliated with strikes on major cities [...]
Aviva’s profits surge following Direct Line acquisition

March 5, 2026

Aviva’s acquisition of Direct Line in 2025 contributed £174m to operating profit for the FTSE 100 giant, as the group’s overall operating profit increased by 25 per cent to £2.2bn. The group informed shareholders that it achieved its 2026 financial targets one year early, specifically reaching its £2bn operating profit and £1.8bn Solvency II own [...]

‘Act now’: AI models capable of attacks on governments months away, Five Eyes warn

Sunderland AFC chiefs in Stadium of Light expansion talks

Procter & Gamble axes relationship with Kremlin propaganda channel

By: Maria Ward-Brennan

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