UK and EU must avoid a ‘punch-up’ over financial services, says incoming BoE governor Bailey February 12, 2020 Britain and the European Union must find a way to settle disagreements over how the UK’s finance industry can do business with the bloc without it descending into a “metaphorical punch-up”, said incoming Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey. Bailey, who is currently head of the Financial Conduct Authority, also said it would be “hard [...]
Starmer pledges to take on top earners as part of 10-point Labour leadership bid February 12, 2020 Labour leadership frontrunner Keir Starmer has pledged to take on the UK’s top earners, as part of a 10-point plan to win over the party membership. Starmer, who is shaking off accusations of centrism from some quarters within the party, this morning said an increase in income tax for people earning over £80,000 was one [...]
Brexit: UK ‘optimistic’ on EU green light for derivatives trading February 12, 2020 The UK is “cautiously optimistic” it will get the EU’s permission for the City’s clearing houses to continue to process trillions of pounds of derivatives for EU customers after Brexit, Bank of England deputy governor Sam Woods said today. The London Stock Exchange’s LCH unit holds positions worth £57 trillion on behalf of clients in [...]
Plus500’s 2019 profits sink after regulatory crackdown February 12, 2020 Plus500 revealed plummeting profits for its 2019 financial year today, but said market volatility boosted trading volumes in the second half. The figures Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) sank 62 per cent year on year from $506m (£390.2m) to just $192.3m. Two-thirds of that was booked in the second half of the [...]
Coronavirus has exposed the flaws of our globalised system February 12, 2020 We cannot yet be sure how many lives have already been tragically lost to the coronavirus outbreak, nor how many are still to be lost until the epidemic is brought under control — if that proves even possible. At the time of writing, the estimated death toll is over 1,000. What we do know is [...]
Have the economic benefits of post-Brexit free ports been overhyped? February 12, 2020 Have the economic benefits of post-Brexit free ports been overhyped? Adrienne Buller, senior research fellow at think tank Common Wealth, says YES. Free ports are a white elephant — a symbolic gesture from the government in lieu of meaningful investment in “levelling up” regions outside London. There is little evidence to support the idea that [...]
Mixed year for Crowdcube as Brexit uncertainty bites crowdfunding appetite February 12, 2020 The UK’s largest crowdfunding platform struggled to achieve its targets under the weight of political uncertainty in 2019, but still managed to report a significant jump in revenue. Sales at Crowdcube rose 36 per cent last year, as a record number of businesses opted to use its services to raise funding from customers and investors [...]
German digital bank N26 quits UK ‘due to Brexit’ February 11, 2020 German digital bank N26 has announced it is pulling out of the UK, saying it will no longer be able to operate in Britain with its European banking licence. The Monzo and Revolut rival, which is valued at $3.5bn after raising $670m in total, said all UK accounts will be shut down by 15 April [...]
London Chamber of Commerce and Industry releases its London mayor election manifesto February 11, 2020 The next mayor of London should prioritise digital infrastructure and immigration reform to boost economic growth post-Brexit, according to the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI). The advocacy group’s manifesto for the London mayoral election was released today, detailing a a wish list of policies for the victor of May’s poll to implement. Among [...]
Bank of England’s Mark Carney says infrastructure investment needed to boost growth February 11, 2020 Bank of England governor Mark Carney has said more public investment in infrastructure and higher corporate spending is needed to boost the UK’s struggling economy. Speaking to the House of Lords’ economic committee, Carney also said he expects interest rates to remain low for the foreseeable future as structural factors such as weak productivity weigh [...]