Criminal case against NatWest tip of £90bn iceberg in ‘money laundering capital of the world’ March 26, 2021 Yesterday it was reported that the recent money laundering charges against NatWest are linked to a separate case against 13 individuals based in cities around the UK. The latest revelations followed the shock announcement, last week, that the Financial Conduct Authority had lodged criminal proceedings against NatWest for money laundering offences. The watchdog – accusing NatWest of [...]
What’s causing the current global shortage of semiconductor chips? March 25, 2021 The modern world runs on semiconductors; everything from mobile phones to washing machines depends on these tiny microchips. But few industries are so totally dependent on these microprocessors as the automotive sector, as has been proved time and again over the last couple of months. Since the shortage was first flagged at the beginning of [...]
UK house price growth slowed in January as buyers paused due to new lockdown March 24, 2021 UK house price growth slowed in January compared to the previous month as buyers paused due to the introduction of new lockdown measures and uncertainty over the length of the stamp duty holiday, according to the latest official data. Average house prices increased by 7.5 per cent over the year to January, down from eight [...]
UK housebuilder Bellway ups selling price expectations and reinstates dividend March 24, 2021 Bellway this morning reinstated its dividend and upped its selling price expectations for this year as the UK housebuilder reported strong demand for new homes. The FTSE 250 developer said the full-year average selling price is now forecast to be more than £295,000, up from a previous estimate of £293,054. It announced it will reinstate [...]
London house prices: First-time buyers now need average deposit of £132,685 March 24, 2021 The average deposit size being put down by people taking their first step on the property ladder in London has increased by more than £20,000 since last year, according to new research published today. Halifax found that, in the 12 months to February 2020, the average deposit put down by first-time buyers in the capital [...]
UK housing transactions soar in ‘sprint finish’ before stamp duty holiday extension March 23, 2021 UK housing transactions soared last month in a “sprint finish” to get deals completed before the initial stamp duty holiday deadline. Residential transactions in the UK were 45.5 per cent higher than February last year and 23 per cent up on January’s levels at 147,050, according to the latest HM Revenue and Customs data. The [...]
Jack Dorsey’s first-ever tweet sells for $2.9m as a non-fungible token March 22, 2021 Twitter boss Jack Dorsey sold his first tweet as an NFT for just over $2.9m earlier today. The tweet is in the form of a non-fungible token (NFT) – a kind of unique digital asset that has exploded in popularity so far in 2021. Each NFT has its own blockchain-based digital signature, which serves as [...]
In a face off against FinTech, traditional face-to-face banks must become more bespoke than ever March 19, 2021 There’s no doubt digital banking is in demand. Last year, $4.1bn was invested into FinTech in the UK, accounting for just under half of Europe’s FinTech investment. Since lockdown began this has continued to grow, with a 72 per cent rise in the use of FinTech apps in Europe as a result of pandemic restrictions. [...]
Exclusive: City’s venture capital guru on Brexit, fundraising and impact investing March 17, 2021 With Brexit just behind us, and the pandemic gradually being brought under control, it seemed like a good time to measure the temperature of London’s venture capital investment space. City A.M. sat down with David Hall, for his first major interview as chairman of the Venture Capital Trust Association, since succeeding Stuart Veale in January [...]
Remote purchase: Can you buy a house you haven’t visited? March 16, 2021 Since the start of the Covid crisis, there has been a lot of talk about remote purchase as a solution to limitations on movement. Some hoped that virtual viewings and remote purchases would be a lifeline to the industry under lockdown and beyond. At Aykroyd & Co, we have had some significant successes with remote [...]