Calls for UK to match European business support from £4.6bn post-Brexit EU fund July 13, 2021 A new report has called on the government to clarify if it will support British firms if they are affected by an uneven playing field that could be created by a €5.3bn fund subsidising its Brexit-impacted industries. If EU countries decide to use much of the new Brexit Adjustment Reserve funds to subsidise private businesses as [...]
Retail, hospitality and transport sectors fear staff abuse when mandatory face masks end July 13, 2021 Business leaders in industries that operate in public indoor settings fear staff could come under attack from customers after the government lifts the legal requirement to wear face masks on 19 July. As of next week, businesses can enforce their own policy on masks as they see fit to protect their staff and customers. But [...]
Banking shares jump after Bank of England gives OK for dividends, bonuses and buybacks July 13, 2021 Banking shares jump after Bank of England gives OK for dividends, bonuses and buybacks
Barclays hires JPMorgan veteran Peter Ward to head global e-trading team July 13, 2021 Peter Ward, a JPMorgan veteran, has been hired by Barclays to become head of digital strategy and global electronic trading from September. He will be based in New York City. Ward will report directly to the bank’s co-president, C.S. Venkatakrishnan, who led the global markets business after a major reshuffle at the top, according to [...]
Global banking powerhouses await forex class action ruling July 12, 2021 A London court this week will rule whether a multi-billion-pound class action filed against the world’s largest banks over accusations of foreign exchange rigging can proceed. Barclays, NatWest, UBS, Citigroup, JPMorgan and MUFG Bank are waiting to see whether they will face the first forex class action in the UK after the five-day hearing kicked [...]
Former Barclays boss Bob Diamond to take crypto firm Circle public in Spac deal July 8, 2021 Former Barclays boss Bob Diamond is set to take cryptocurrency firm Circle public through a $4.5bn (£3.3bn) blank-cheque listing. The complex Spac deal will see Circle merge with Concord Acquisition Corp, which is backed by Diamond, before the combined entity is acquired by a new Irish holding company that will trade on the New York [...]
Wise valued at £8bn in London’s biggest ever tech float July 7, 2021 Wise, one of Britain’s biggest fintech firms, has seen its valuation hit £8bn after listing on the London Exchange this morning, marking a major boost for the capital’s tech scene. Shares in the payments group, formerly known as Transferwise, began trading at £8 each in its eagerly-awaited stock market float. It follows an auction process [...]
UK banks bolster debt collection teams ahead of first Covid loan repayments July 6, 2021 The UK’s leading banks are bolstering their debt collection teams as the first repayments of emergency Covid loans fall due. Britain’s four largest banks have hired over 750 workers in their debt collection units in an effort to manage a wave of potential defaults. NatWest has taken on 150 extra staff to handle chasing Covid [...]
John Lewis and Waitrose to introduce flexible working for head office staff July 5, 2021 Bosses at John Lewis and Waitrose have confirmed they will introduce flexible working for all staff based at the company’s head offices. The announcement by the employee-owned retailer came after Boris Johnson confirmed plans to lift most lockdown restrictions on 19 July, including an end to the government’s work from home guidance. “If restrictions are [...]
FTSE 100 lifts as supermarkets drive rally July 5, 2021 London’s FTSE 100 rose on Monday afternoon, driven by a rally in supermarket shares. The capital’s premier index added 0.56 per cent to reach 7,163 in the afternoon session, paring back this morning’s losses. The gains were partly caused by shares in supermarkets rising in afternoon trading after Apollo Global Management announced it was considering [...]