The companies finding the perfect house plant for you March 12, 2021 Before lockdown, house plants were around to brighten up the place. Now for many of us, they are our best friends and sole confidants, helping pull us through the long, lonely days. During the pandemic, sales of indoor plants have spiked, with a host of new subscription delivery services cropping up to meet the demand [...]
Diversity blow: UK banks lost 10,000 women in 2020 March 12, 2021 The number of women at the UK’s five biggest lenders shrank by three per cent during 2020, according to new Bloomberg data. Men saw a decline of around 2.1 per cent as banks pushed ahead with long-planned cuts and navigated the Covid-19 crisis. At NatWest, roles filled by women fell by nine per cent compared [...]
Analysts: UK economy ‘like a punchdrunk boxer hanging off the ropes’ March 12, 2021 UK’s GDP shrank by 2.9 per cent in January, it was announced this morning, blowing a “cold snap” through the UK economy as a third national lockdown was imposed. Analysts were torn as to whether the harsh fall is a glass of cold water to the face, or better than what was forecast. January’s figures [...]
Begbies Traynor set for £25m acquisition in biggest deal yet March 12, 2021 Begbies Traynor has agreed to buy insolvency practice David Rubin & Partners, in a deal worth up to £25m. The deal represents Begbies Traynor’s biggest acquisition to date, and continues the firm’s recent acquisitive spree, which has seen it buy two firms already this year. Begbies Traynor will pay an initial £12m for David Rubin [...]
We need to strap a rocket to the government’s FinTech thinking March 12, 2021 In his final article of the week, Lord Chris Holmes details the urgent need for a centre within government that could lead on FinTech.
Locked Down is the pandemic heist movie we didn’t need March 12, 2021 While some TV shows and awards ceremonies have made magic out of the limitations of the pandemic, movies haven’t fared as well. Michael Bay’s Songbird was a misfire, while Netflix’s Malcolm and Marie wasted talented actors on a self-indulgent script. Locked Down was conceived, written, filmed, and edited in around four months from the start [...]
Deutsche Bank boosts CEO pay by 46 per cent following return to profit March 12, 2021 Deutsche Bank raised CEO Christian Sewing’s pay by 46 per cent to $8.8m in 2020 as the bank revelled in profit after years of losses. Bonuses for the entire bank were up 29 per cent as it rewarded its senior staff for a pandemic-related trading boom. Some were less impressed with the rise, as call [...]
Parallel markets: The City must push back against Europe’s protectionist financial walls March 12, 2021 Governments, however enlightened and visionary, can so often make two fundamental errors of judgement about global financial service markets: they grossly underestimate their multi trillion dollar power and manoeuvrability. They forget their close attention to competition, cost and risk, and the pursuit of liquidity. In continuing to raise protectionist walls around its internal financial markets, the [...]
We need a new law to root out corporate supply chain abuses — wherever they take place March 12, 2021 The now all too familiar, shocking allegations of forced labour at Boohoo factories in Leicester are once again grabbing headlines. Last week Boohoo was hit with a double whammy as US lawmakers are mulling a potential import ban against the company, and UK MPs are asking for a long-term bonus scheme to be linked to supply chain [...]
Hammerson widens losses as pandemic wipes £2bn off portfolio value March 12, 2021 Retail landlord Hammerson this morning posted a £1.7bn loss for last year, after the coronavirus pandemic wiped £2bn off the value of its property portfolio. Hammerson, which owns Birmingham’s Bullring Shopping Centre, said losses widened from £781m in 2019 to £1.7bn last year, primarily due to falling property values. Its portfolio value at the end [...]
