Neil Woodford: ‘I could not have been more transparent’ June 5, 2025 Neil Woodford has denied misleading investors over the contents of his collapsed investment fund, insisting that he “could not have been more transparent” to his thousands of retail shareholders. Speaking exclusively to City AM, Woodford said he regularly published information on his fund’s portfolio and his investment strategy prior to its implosion, arguing that the [...]
Foreign companies drive £19bn M&A surge as UK firms ‘attractively valued’ June 3, 2025 Takeovers of British firms reached the highest level in nearly three years as several multi-billion pound transactions made by foreign companies pushed up the value of mergers and acquisitions (M&A), official data has shown. Inward M&A deals in the first three months of the year exceeded £19bn, nearly four times that seen in the last [...]
Google is getting AI wrong June 3, 2025 Google’s AI strategy, though technically impressive, lacks the cohesive vision, enterprise-grade stability, and governance needed to earn long-term trust from businesses navigating the AI era, says Paul Armstrong Google’s I/O 2025 event was a spectacle of AI announcements, unveiling more than 100 updates across its product ecosystem. From the introduction of Veo 3, a generative [...]
Mortgage lending plummets in April as estate agents cross fingers for rate cut June 2, 2025 Mortgage lending dropped in April after the market ‘reset’ following the end of the stamp duty holiday, according to new figures. Net borrowing of mortgage debt decreased sharply by £13.7bn to -£0.8bn in April, according to the Bank of England’s latest data. Net mortgage approvals for house purchases also fell for the third consecutive month, [...]
Valterra Platinum: Shares rise on London debut after Anglo American demerger June 2, 2025 Shares in Valterra Platinum rose on Monday in a positive start to the mining company’s London debut following its $11bn demerger from Anglo American. The secondary London listing, in which shares nudged up 1.8 per cent at the end of the first day’s trading, follows an earlier primary listing in Johannesburg. Valterra’s London-listed shares have [...]
Relaxed mortgage rules could increase first-time buyer deals by a quarter June 2, 2025 Changes in the way lenders stress test borrowers for mortgages could lead to a huge jump in the amount of first-time buyers able to access the housing market, according to Savills. Savills’ analysis found first-time buyer transactions could increase by up to 24 per cent over the next five years if lending rules continue to [...]
Property transactions falter despite rise in number of homes available May 30, 2025 Homebuying in the UK slowed in April after the end of the stamp duty holiday, despite an uptick in the number of properties available. The number of UK residential transactions in April 2025 was 64,680, 28 per cent lower than April 2024 and 64 per cent lower than March 2025, according to official statistics. Estate agents attributed [...]
Nationwide hands customers billions as FTSE 100 banks up shareholder payouts May 30, 2025 Nationwide returned billions to customers in 2024 whilst the FTSE 100 banking juggernauts used excess capital to up payouts for shareholders. The building society handed customers £2.8bn in the last year through a combination of reward schemes that offered better rates on savings and loans. Meanwhile, listed banks used their extra cash to give big [...]
Nationwide posts bumper year after stamp duty rush May 29, 2025 Nationwide Building Society bolstered its takings in the 12 months to March 31 2025, after a rush to beat the stamp duty deadline led to a surge in first-time buyers. The firm said it served more first-time buyers than any other lender in the UK, with 120,000 purchasing their first home. This was a significant leap from [...]
The Enhanced Games sporting experiment will prove short-lived May 29, 2025 The Enhanced Games aims to shake up sport by allowing performance enhancing substances, but Ed Warner argues the concept will be short-lived. Man dives into a pool wearing a full racing bodysuit. Swims a single length of front crawl. Alone. Is rewarded with $1m for breaking the world record. Could this be the dullest clip [...]