A diverse market of payment providers is healthy competition but it comes at a cost April 26, 2022 Today, companies whose raison d’etre is far from fintech find themselves needing to process payments transactions in very large quantities. Yet the historical payments infrastructure, which only supported financial institutions with payments, is increasingly unfit for purpose. What’s happening is that consumer businesses are being forced to become fintechs. This evolution is causing the entire [...]
As house prices hit another all-time high, we need to cut bureaucracy burdening sales April 26, 2022 Yesterday, average house prices in England hit a record high for the third consecutive month, according to RightMove. They reached an average of £360,100. High buyer demand and a limited number of homes available are likely to send prices even higher. Against this backdrop, it’s about time we reconsider the way we buy and sell [...]
EXCLUSIVE: Government and railway industry to be more ‘radical’ in R&D April 26, 2022 The railway sector and the UK Government need to be more “radical” when it comes to research and development (R&D) according to a paper published today. Through its Railway Innovation Strategy, the Railway Industry Association (RIA) has called on the government to roll out more investment in rail innovation and provide funding, while asking the [...]
Twitter accepts Musk’s $44bn buyout deal April 25, 2022 Twitter has accepted a $44bn buyout from Tesla tycoon Elon Musk which takes the firm into private ownership
Former aide to Cameron fights to keep co-working firm afloat with emergency cash April 25, 2022 One of David Cameron’s former aides is fighting to keep his shared office firm Second Home afloat as he rushes to secure £6m of emergency funding from investors.
Amazon faces tide of stateside union action alongside Starbucks and Apple  April 25, 2022 Amazon workers are gearing up to unionise in a second US warehouse, as big name brands continue to feel the sting of impending collective action stateside.
Universities braced for £250m funding hit due to Northern Ireland Brexit row April 25, 2022 Universities are set to weather a £250m hit to research funding if political leaders cannot settle the row over Northern Ireland, which is blocking the UK’s admission to a key European research body.
Motorists spared £50 annual insurance hike as government scraps EU law in Brexit win April 25, 2022 Motorists will be spared a £50 annual insurance hike after the UK Government scrapped EU regulations. A bill to scrap the EU’s Vnuk motor insurance law was passed today through Parliament and, according to government, will prevent a £2bn hike for the UK’s insurance industry. Under the EU law, motorsports, agricultural machinery and light electric [...]
The City View: Musk on cusp of Twitter buy, and global markets down April 25, 2022 Today Andy Silvester talks to Jack Barnett, City A.M.’s Economics and Markets reporter. They go through the global market dip and why China’s zero-Covid lockdowns are concerning investors; bank earnings for Q1; and new ONS data showing that 9 in 10 households have recorded an uptick in their cost of living. And in the news, [...]
China zero-Covid policy sends chill through global markets April 25, 2022 Anxiety over the spillover effects on the global economy of China plunging more of its largest cities into lockdown as it ploughs ahead with its zero-Covid policy sent global markets tumbling today. A surge in infections has increased the likelihood of authorities tipping more cities into the most onerous Covid-19 restrictions, including China’s capital Beijing. [...]
