New £800m UK science research agency called Aria to open in 2022 February 19, 2021 The government will today announce a new £800m military research agency that was spearheaded by former Boris Johnson aide Dominic Cummings. The Advanced Research & Invention Agency (Aria) will be “tasked with funding high-risk research that offers the chance of high rewards” and is set to be launched next year. A statement from the Department of [...]
New City lobby: Big bank influence is holding UK financial services back post-Brexit February 18, 2021 A new pro-Brexit City of London lobby group has taken aim at competitor The CityUK, saying that the established body is “dominated by multinational banks” that do not care about the UK’s prosperity. The CityUnited project was formed earlier this week by a group of Eurosceptic City figures and politicians, with the group aiming to [...]
Will London’s budding cannabis market turn the EU green with envy? February 18, 2021 One after the other, medical cannabis companies are listing on the London Stock Exchange (LSE), and investors are piling in cash, keen to be early investors in what they hope will become a major industry in the UK. It is an exciting time for the medicinal cannabis industry. In September, City regulator the Financial Conduct [...]
UK Treasury mulls scrapping EU cap on bonuses for City bankers February 18, 2021 The UK Treasury is reportedly considering scrapping an EU cap on bankers’ bonuses in a bid to keep the City competitive post-Brexit. The UK is now free to set its own regulatory agenda on financial services, with divergence from EU rules expected. The Financial Times reports that one potential change could be removing an EU [...]
UK businesses eye fintech sector to help drive profitability February 18, 2021 A growing number of UK businesses are looking to the burgeoning fintech sector to help boost profits post-Brexit. Britain’s payments startups have seen renewed interest during the pandemic as consumers and businesses pivot online. A third of senior managers surveyed by cybersecurity firm ESET are prioritising improved efficiency and may opt to implement fintech solutions [...]
City A.M. TV: Daily Market Snapshot (video) February 18, 2021 Price action in markets has been poor in the past 24 hours. In particular, having broken out to new highs earlier this week, major US equity indices have fallen back into the middle of their recent trading ranges (including both the S&P500 & Nasdaq100). The ‘upside breakout’, therefore, has been false. That raises a key question [...]
PwC: Northern Ireland is the best place to live post-pandemic February 18, 2021 Professional services firm PwC has found that Northern Ireland is the best place to live, compared with the rest of the UK, as people continue to trade cities for the countryside after a year spent at home. Surveying over 4000 people across the country, the firm found that more people in Northern Ireland, than in [...]
Analysts: ‘Dogged’ Barclays weathering pandemic storm as investment banking arm booms February 18, 2021 Barclays’ investment banking arm is ‘firing on all cylinders’ after posting a record income earlier this morning. The division’s success has helped the bank to soften the financial impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, which hit profits repeatedly in 2020. John Moore, senior investment manager at Brewin Dolphin, deems the success of Barclays’ investment division ‘ironic’ [...]
Exclusive: Brewin Dolphin’s CEO on Brexit, pandemic market sentiment and why ESG is not so clear-cut February 18, 2021 As the City comes to terms with a new post-Brexit reality and slowly looks towards a post-pandemic recovery, City A.M sits down with the CEO of one of the Square Mile’s best-known investment managers, Robin Beer of Brewin Dolphin. Beer, who joined the firm in 2008, initially managed the Nottingham office and was regional director [...]
British music exports to hit £1bn by 2030 amid song rights boom February 18, 2021 The value of British music exports could double to £1bn by 2030 if the UK cashes in on the surging value of music rights and growth in new markets after Brexit, according to a new report. The rise of streaming services such as Spotify has fuelled a boom in music assets, with global revenues from [...]