Choosing the most suitable card is not a zero-sum game May 6, 2010 WHEN Yorkshire Bank and Clydesdale Bank announced earlier this week their offer of 0 per cent interest on balance transfers for the first 16 months, it threw the cat among the pigeons. The two banks, both UK subsidiaries of National Australia Bank, leapt straight to the top of the best-buy comparison tables with the deal, [...]
PERSONAL FINANCE NEWS May 6, 2010 CHELSEA OFFERS FIRST ONLINE ACCOUNT Chelsea Building Society has launched its first ever online account, the e-Saver Reward. The account, which pays monthly interest of 2.57 per cent (2.60 per cent AER), is available to UK residents aged 16 and over and has a minimum deposit of £1. Withdrawals can be made online with only [...]
A tranquil heaven far from clubland May 6, 2010 AS any Europhile will tell you, away from the clubs, Ibiza is one of the Mediterranean’s brightest gems: as tranquil and exotic as anywhere in Europe, with crystalline waters, dramatic vegetation, ancient stone architecture, wonderful local cuisines and a true Spanish feel. And with British Airways’s new direct flights from City Airport, Ibiza’s charms as [...]
SELLING Q&A May 6, 2010 MANAGING DIRECTOR OF PROPERTY HUNT Q. Dear Russell, I’m selling my home but it is taking ages. How do I know if the buyer is stalling? A. The key is to have a good solicitor on board who is a specialist in residential property rather than a generalist. They will be able to deal with [...]
Be chairman of the board in this City penthouse May 6, 2010 SPENDING one’s working day in the boardroom is one thing, but living in one? That’s the option awaiting anyone who snaps up this smart-as-they-come penthouse on the edge of the City. The triplex three bedroom apartment called The Provenance (you’ll just have to get used to the name) sits at the top of a Victorian [...]
Venturing into the unknown May 6, 2010 ASKING entrepreneurs what they wanted to be when they were younger is always interesting. Did they have dreams of becoming an astronaut? A milkman? For Patrick Reeve, the founder of Albion Ventures, a venture capital firm, his first hankering was to become an archaeologist, but that idea was shelved early on in favour of business, [...]
SMEs looking for support at Westminster May 6, 2010 SMALL and medium-sized firms make up 99 per cent of all UK businesses, but although our nation relies on entrepreneurs to provide employment to millions of citizens, small firms have felt ignored by politicians during the election campaign and the economic downturn. A survey by accountancy firm Haines Watts, for which 650 business owners from [...]
ADVERTISING Q&A May 6, 2010 Q. I have recently started a business and am wondering whether I should be planning for an advertising campaign? A. Lots of entrepreneurs won’t be able to afford to spend on an advertising campaign when they first start out, it’s usually something that comes down the line. However, Carl Harris, business director at Cuba UK, [...]
The girl that’s helping City ladies sparkle May 6, 2010 LAUREN Adriana could have taken the easy route of gliding, It-Girl style, through her twenties. At 24, she is fashion aristocracy, being the grand-daughter of designer Paul Smith and the child of fashion world insiders. She’s friends with all the right people (including the world’s most famous jeweller Joel Arthur Rosenthal, known as JAR) and [...]
High concept meets low aspirations May 6, 2010 Film HOT TUB TIME MACHINE Cert: 15 ** PRESUMABLY the makers of Hot Tub Time Machine started with the title – as titles, and indeed ideas, for high-concept extreme silliness go, it’s a humdinger. What couldn’t be funny about a hot tub that transports you back to the neon-coloured, mullet-sporting 1980s? Hmmm – well, pretty [...]
