BoE boss Andrew Bailey denies responsibility for London Capital & Finance collapse February 9, 2021 Bank of England boss Andrew Bailey has hit out at allegations that he was not quick enough to reform the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) before the collapse of London Capital & Finance (LCF). Bailey, who was chief executive of the FCA when the mini-bond firm collapsed in 2019, said the regulator had been a “broken [...]
Electronic trading surges with traders eyeing the impact of machine learning February 9, 2021 Professional traders are anticipating artificial intelligence and machine learning to be the most influential technology over the next three years. JP Morgan’s flagship survey reveals more than half of professional and institutional traders anticipate machine learning to lead technology. Currently a third of client traders predict mobile trading applications to be the most influential this [...]
Back to basics: Three ‘Rs’ can revive the High Street February 9, 2021 The news this week that Asos has bought Topshop, Topman and Miss Selfridge from the failed Arcadia group is the latest evidence of the rapidly increasing dominance of younger online retailers over the traditional bricks-and-mortar fashion stores. The deal comes hot on the heels of Boohoo agreeing to pay £55m for the Debenhams brand last week. And [...]
Is central London finished? International investors think otherwise February 9, 2021 It is a strange experience going into central London right now. Areas that are normally bustling with crowds or chaotic with commuters lie still – even Pret A Manger has reduced its menu and opening times. Those who live outside of Zone 1 and for whom memories of maroon coffee cups, the underground and the [...]
DAY 1: Tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch fights extradition to the US February 9, 2021 British tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch began earlier today his fight against his extradition, slamming the US for “overreaching” and saying the UK authorities could prosecute the alleged fraud. Alex Bailin QC, for Lynch, said the US Department of Justice (DoJ) is “not the global marshall of the corporate world”, as he launched the former Autonomy [...]
Government to require repeated Covid tests for all incoming passengers – report February 8, 2021 All passengers arriving in the UK are set to be tested for coronavirus on days two and eight of self-isolation as part of new rules. The government only introduced mandatory testing last month, nearly a year after the first coronavirus cases were recorded in Britain. All arrivals must have a negative test within the past [...]
Crypto exchanges glitch on bitcoin bounce after Tesla’s $1.5bn investment February 8, 2021 Cryptocurrency exchanges were battling technical issues this evening as trading volumes soared following the announcement that Elon Musk’s Tesla had invested $1.5bn in bitcoin. The electric carmaker said it had bought Bitcoin for “more flexibility to further diversify and maximise returns on our cash.” Elon Musk’s company added it may invest a future portion of [...]
US markets surge to a record and FTSE starts the week on a high February 8, 2021 US markets surge to a record and FTSE starts the week on a high
Napster set for London listing after MelodyVR deal February 8, 2021 Napster is reportedly preparing to list in London later this month following the $70m (£53.8m) reverse takeover by startup MelodyVR. Napster will start trading on Aim from 26 February, according to the Guardian, the first time it has ever had its own IPO. Virtual music tech company MelodyVR, which launched in 2018, announced it had [...]
Cain International mulling insolvency process for Italian chain Prezzo – report February 8, 2021 The private equity firm which bought Italian chain Prezzo in December is reportedly mulling putting the restaurant group through an insolvency process. Sky News reported that Cain International was considering a number of options, including pre-pack administration, as uncertainty over the future of the casual dining sector goes on. The firm, which also owns Swingers [...]