London Stock Exchange Group buoyed by rise in volumes – but Aim still suffering June 25, 2015 Things were looking up for London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) in the five months to the end of May – although volumes were less encouraging on its junior market. The figures New issues on LSEG's main markets were up 29 per cent in the period, while average daily UK equity value traded was up eight per [...]
Happy birthday Aim: How 20 years of London’s junior market stacks up June 19, 2015 Today is the 20th anniversary of the UK's junior market: despite the fact Aim is currently sitting 24 per cent below its opening price, it has enjoyed some remarkable success stories. The market started with just 10 components at its launch back in 1995; these days, 1,074 companies are listed on Aim. Its value has [...]
The whole country can celebrate the Aim market’s twentieth anniversary June 18, 2015 Twenty years ago today, on 19 June 1995, London Stock Exchange launched Aim, a new market for ambitious growing businesses. With only 10 companies admitted on the first day of trading, with an aggregate value of just £82m, few might have envisaged it would be celebrating its twentieth anniversary this year. Since its inception, [...]
London Technology Week: Tech City is an awesome success story combining the best of Silicon Valley, Wall Street, New York and DC June 16, 2015 I emigrated from Silicon Valley a little more than ten years ago to work at a very young startup at the time, Skype. It was so new then that I spent months correcting friends’ pronunciation of the company name from Skype-ee to Skype. At that time I was exasperated at the dearth of candidates for [...]
Start it in your late 30s, and keep your founding team in place: How to create a $1bn tech startup “unicorn” – and why London has created eight in the past year June 15, 2015 Want to own a $1bn (£644m) tech firm (yep, us too)? Get some experience, and start the business when you're in your late 30s, new research has suggested. The research, by investment banking firm GP Bullhound to mark London Tech Week, provides a step-by-step guide to getting that $1bn tech "unicorn" off the ground. Here's [...]
Asos share price opens lower after “Black Friday” style outage as customers clamour for discount June 1, 2015 Shares in online retail giant opened 1.5 per cent lower at 3,630p after a day-long outage prevented thousands of customers from taking advantage of a 20 per cent discount. Banners on the website advertised a 20 per cent discount on "Every. Single. Thing", causing customers to flock to the site. But it failed to stand [...]
The right credit card can slash holiday costs: Air miles cards are popular but fees and rewards vary considerably May 26, 2015 Competition has become fierce among credit card providers and many are having to raise their stakes when it comes to perks for new customers. Air miles are the latest area of growth for credit card companies. While they may not have the best annual percentage rates (APRs), these cards will act as an extension [...]
IPOs breathe life into stagnant small caps after investment struggle May 5, 2015 Investments in the UK’s smaller companies have struggled this year, but some fund managers are hoping that newly-listed companies will help revive the sector. Since the start of the year, small caps quoted on the FTSE Aim All-Share TR index have lagged their large-cap peers on the FTSE 100. But since April, smaller companies have [...]
Has the London Marathon left you wanting more? These are some of Europe’s most stunning challenges for runners April 27, 2015 Whether you're feeling fresh from yesterday's marathon triumph or you've made a solemn vow never to to look at another running shoe, it's worth thinking about next year's challenge. As thousands discovered to their chagrin this year, places on the biggest runs go quickly – and in many cases, ballots make clinching a place [...]
Asos poaches new finance chief from debt manager Capquest April 14, 2015 FASHION giant Asos said yesterday it has ended a six-month search for a new chief financial officer after poaching Helen Ashton from debt management business Capquest. Ashton will join the online retailer in September, replacing Nick Beighton who has already moved into his new position as chief operating officer. Ashton [pictured left] was finance director [...]