Former No 10 spin doctor Robbie Gibb joins BBC board April 29, 2021 Sir Robbie Gibb, a former Downing Street head of communications, has been appointed to the board of the BBC. Gibb will take up a three-year term as nations director for England on the board, which is responsible for ensuring the BBC fulfils its mission and public purposes. The spin doctor, who served under Theresa May [...]
The Evening Read: City veteran Gavin Rochussen on closing deals remotely April 29, 2021 In an exclusive interview, City A.M. sits down with Gavin Rochussen, the CEO of St. James’s-based Polar Capital, to talk all things asset management, how the pandemic has changed working practices, navigating acquisitions in lockdown and how culture is so important to success. You told me that Polar Capital is a boutique asset manager, but [...]
Sir Simon Stevens to quit as NHS England chief executive April 29, 2021 NHS England chief Sir Simon Stevens will step down from at the end of July after seven years in the role. The NHS put out a statement today about Stevens’ departure, while Downing Street said shortly after that he will be given a peerage. Number 10 said: “The Queen has been pleased to confer a [...]
Exclusive: Scrapping paper documents could boost UK trade by £25bn April 29, 2021 Digitising business and removing tens of millions of paper documents would boost small British businesses’ overseas trade by £25bn over the next four years, according to new research. A report by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), seen by City A.M., argued that UK firms were trapped in the “bureaucracies of the 16th century” and [...]
London homes snapped up by Hong Kong buyers quadruples April 29, 2021 The number of London homes being bought by Hong Kong buyers has quadrupled since the UK’s visa scheme has allowed many to relocate. Hong Kong buyers now account for four per cent of transactions in the capital, up from one per cent, according to client data from property firm Benham and Reeves. Since the British National [...]
Brand London: How will the capital change after Covid and Brexit? April 29, 2021 As the UK gradually emerges from lockdown, the deserted streets of London are beginning to show hints of their former vibrancy. But a return to normality will be far from straightforward. Not only has London been left reeling from the Covid-19 pandemic, it is still working through the fallout from Brexit, which has sparked a [...]
UK set to formally recognise the EU’s ambassador in bid to cool tensions April 29, 2021 The UK is set to grant full diplomatic status to the EU’s ambassador to the UK in a move that could cool tensions and put to bed a long-running dispute. João Vale de Almeida, a near lifetime Eurocrat, took up the ambassadorial post last year, but had not been formally recognised by Boris Johnson’s government. [...]
Schroders’ assets under management edges up £9 billion in three months to new record April 29, 2021 Assets under management (AUM) at Schroders jumped £9bn in the first three months of the year, up to £672bn in total – a record high for the group. In a previous trading update the asset manager said the rise in AUM showcased “the benefits of active investment management and our ability to deliver a good [...]
Exclusive: A quarter of Londoners fear capital will lose global status April 29, 2021 More than a quarter of Londoners fear the capital will become less important on the global stage as a result of the dual shock of Covid-19 and Brexit. A survey conducted by market research firm One Pulse exclusively for City A.M. revealed 26.5 per cent of Londoners believe the city will lose international clout over [...]
Exclusive: Private equity firms strike £10bn of carve-out deals as pandemic drives sale of non-core units April 28, 2021 Private equity firms made £10.1bn of corporate carve-out acquisitions in the UK last year, up from just £765m in 2019 as the Covid-19 pandemic drove more corporates to sell non-core business units, according to new data shared with City A.M. this evening. The economic disruption of the past year has forced many large businesses to [...]