Boohoo confirms talks with Philip Green’s Arcadia over high street retail deal January 29, 2021 Boohoo has confirmed this morning it is in exclusive talks with Philip Green’s Arcadia group over the acquisition of Dorothy Perkins, Wallis and Burton. Topshop owner Arcadia collapsed at the beginning of December, launching 13,000 jobs into uncertainty and becoming the biggest retail casualty of a harsh year on the high street. Boohoo said in [...]
Paragon Banking Group reports fall in first quarter lending January 29, 2021 Challenger bank Paragon Banking Group has reported an “encouraging start to the year” despite a fall in lending volumes. “We have made an encouraging start to the year. Good momentum in new business flows has led to strong growth in the pipelines, particularly for buy-to-let and development finance,” chief executive Nigel Terrington said. In the [...]
Robinhood raises $1bn from investors amid GameStop frenzy January 29, 2021 Trading platform Robinhood is raising an infusion of more than $1bn from its investors, having been strained by high volumes of trading this week. On Thursday, the company was forced to stop customers from buying stocks that were heavily traded, such as struggling videogame retailer GameStop. According to a New York Times report, the company [...]
SSAB pulls out of talks to buy Tata Steel’s Dutch plant January 29, 2021 Swedish firm SSAB today pulled out of talks to buy Tata Steel’s Dutch assets in a blow to the multinational conglomerate. Back in November talks between the two sides began after Tata indicated it was looking to break up its European operations. Under the plans, the firm said it would make its facilities at Port [...]
UK tech sector outpaces entire private sector January 29, 2021 The UK’s tech sector expanded at a stronger rate than the entire private sector last quarter and is set to reach a four-and-a-half year high this year. Tech saw another rise in business activity in the fourth quarter, according to IHS Markit and KPMG research, although the pace of expansion slowed amid a wider economic [...]
Reading resurgence leads Bloomsbury to hike guidance January 29, 2021 Bloomsbury said that its revenue and profit would both be ahead of forecasts for the full year due to the surge in reading over lockdown. In a trading update, the publisher said that strong trading in its consumer division would leave profit “well ahead” of expectations of £12.1m. Current revenue forecasts for the year, which [...]
EU says AstraZeneca contract contains ‘binding orders’ as vaccine row intensifies January 29, 2021 The European Union’s contract with AstraZeneca for its Covid-19 vaccine contains binding orders, the EU Commission head said on Friday. Ursula von der Leyen has demanded a plausible explanation from the UK-based vaccine maker for delivery hold-ups, describing the contract as “crystal clear”. AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot defended the drug maker earlier this week, claiming [...]
Novavax Covid-19 vaccine shows 89 per cent efficacy in UK trials January 29, 2021 The Novavax Covid-19 vaccine has shown an 89.3 per cent efficacy in phase three of a clinical trial conducted in the UK. The UK has ordered 60m doses of the vaccine, which will have to be approved by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency before being distributed to the public. So far, more than [...]
Billionaire Coates family of Bet365 stump up half a billion in tax January 29, 2021 Gambling family Denise, John and Peter Coates of Bet365 have paid more than half a billion pounds (£573m) in tax this year, making them the top taxpayers in the UK. Denise Coates founded Bet365 in 2000, and the tax paid by the family and the business is equal to the price of paying for 62,725 [...]
Taxing time for Ed Sheeran as singer pays £28m to HMRC January 29, 2021 Singer Ed Sheeran paid a whopping £28m in taxes this year, making him one of the UK’s biggest taxpayers. Ed Sheeran was named along with 49 others as part of the Sunday Times Tax List, which lists the taxes paid by the wealthiest in the country. Sheeran was by far the most high-profile new entry [...]
