Panmure Gordon grows profits after Bob Diamond-led takeover October 9, 2018 Venerable British stockbroker Panmure Gordon grew its profits in 2017 after being taken over last year by a consortium that included ex-Barclays boss Bob Diamond. Panmure Gordon’s parent company, Panmure Gordon Group, made profits after tax of £2.3m in 2017, more than double the £1.1m 2016 profits of the pre-takeover group. The firm made net [...]
Waste disposal firm stripped of NHS contract after body parts scandal October 9, 2018 A company which stockpiled hundreds of tonnes of hospital waste, including human body parts, has been stripped of its NHS contract. Healthcare Environmental Services (HES) is under investigation after allowing mountains of waste, including human body parts and hazardous materials, to pile up at its facilities. Leaked documents revealed excess waste levels at the firm's [...]
Mercedes sales drop in Europe as new emissions testing regime creates backlog October 8, 2018 European sales of Mercedes-Benz plummeted in September as the firm battled a vehicle testing backlog. Globally the company sold eight per cent less last month, with Europe especially badly hit, dropping by almost a tenth. Producers have been hit by a backlog caused by new European testing standards introduced on 1 September. Mercedes was particularly [...]
FTSE 100 drops to six-month low on weak oil stocks and uncertainty across Europe October 8, 2018 Weak oil stocks and economic uncertainty across Europe has dragged the FTSE 100 down more than 1 per cent to a six-month low. Britain's top index has fallen today, along with the German DAX despite the pound and euro dropping against the dollar. Read more: Unilever keeps UK headquarters: Investors react Royal Dutch Shell shares [...]
Five key takeaways from the FRC’s audit sector report October 8, 2018 The Financial Reporting Council (FRC), the audit sector’s watchdog, released its annual Developments in Audit report yesterday, outlining key challenges faced in the sector and assessing the current state of the profession. Audit is under close scrutiny at the moment, as politicians and regulators look closely at the dominance of the Big Four audit firms Deloitte, [...]
Citi to set up a new UK bank post-Brexit October 6, 2018 Citigroup is to transfer its UK consumer operations into a new UK bank, headquartered in London, in time for the country's exit from the European Union. A note sent out to customers revealed the move yesterday, in which the bank said its UK business, previously managed via Citibank Europe in Ireland, will be moved by March [...]
Opinion: Brokenshire’s £1bn plan to get SME developers to build more houses won’t work if the economy is unstable October 5, 2018 While it may seem as if all of our politicians are spending most of their time fretting over Brexit, James Brokenshire, the latest secretary of state for housing, communities and local government, recently announced an initiative to encourage more small and medium-sized (SME) developers into the market. The Government will be partnering with Barclays to [...]
Watchdog slaps Lloyds with legal demands over PPI failures October 4, 2018 The UK’s competition watchdog has handed Lloyds legal directions after the lender failed to meet its obligations around managing accounts with payment protection insurance (PPI), the policy at the centre of a huge mis-selling scandal. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has called on the lender to “put effective systems and procedures in place” after it [...]
Soho House boss says second City of London venue has not been ruled out October 2, 2018 The boss of private members club chain Soho House said the company had not ruled out opening a second venue in The City following the success of The Ned, as the business reported boosted revenue in its 2017 results. Chief executive Nick Jones, who founded the original venue in Soho's Greek Street in 1995, told City A.M. that [...]
City Moves for 2 October 2018 – who’s switching jobs at KL Communications, Barclays and CBRE? October 2, 2018 Today’s City Moves cover comms, corporate broking and property. Take a look at these movers and shakers: KL Communications KL Communications, the financial PR and communication consultancy, has hired Charles Gorman to lead its listed company practice. Charles, who joins from Neustria Partners, specialises in advising listed investment and specialty financial companies on their strategic [...]