Political pressure builds on banks to close gap between savings and mortgage rates June 12, 2023 Banks have been shortchanging customers for nearly a year with the average mortgage rates exceeding savings rates by over three per cent since last July. According to data from Moneyfacts, at the end of last week the average rate on offer for a two year mortgage was 5.87. The average rate on a savings account [...]
Tesco prepares its quarterly results as UK competition regulator circles supermarket June 11, 2023 Tesco is set to report its first quarter trading results on Friday as the UK’s competition regulator circles the country’s largest supermarket chain over concerns about its pricing strategies. Last week, it emerged that consumer goods champion Which? had reported Tesco to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) over claims that it does not display [...]
FCA’s new crypto advertising rules met with mixed industry response June 8, 2023 A round-up of industry reaction to the FCA's sweeping new rules surrounding the marketing and promotion of digital assets.
Hitachi billion-pound deal to buy UK signalling could hurt TfL: regulator June 8, 2023 The UK’s competition watchdog has provisionally ruled that Hitachi’s 1.7 billion euro (£1.36 billion) proposed purchase of Thales’s rail infrastructure could drive up prices and reduce service quality for passengers. The findings could lead to the merger being blocked. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said the deal involves two of the leading suppliers of [...]
Ed Warner: Remove Fifa toxicity to get Women’s World Cup on the box June 8, 2023 When a global sporting event takes place without TV coverage, does it really happen? Or at least, does it really matter? That question should be front of mind for all the protagonists in the standoff over broadcast rights for next month’s Fifa Women’s World Cup. Blank screens are looming larger with every passing day in [...]
What is the future of financial services regulation? June 7, 2023 Lord Holmes of Richmond emphasises the importance of the Financial Services and Markets Bill currently going through the House of Lords.
The CMA decision to block Microsoft’s Activision deal could cost us dearly in the UK June 6, 2023 The CMA decision to block Microsoft from acquiring Activision could be detrimental in the long-run: it could scare off other companies who will choose to set up shop elsewhere, writes Jason Chapman
Watchdogs in focus as proposed shakeup of financial regulation returns to parliament June 5, 2023 The UK’s financial regulators will be in focus as lawmakers consider a range of proposals to boost the accountability of watchdogs. A range of amendments to the Financial Services and Markets Bill have been put forward, focusing on the scrutiny of regulators as the Bill returns to parliament this week. Regulatory scrutiny has been a [...]
Succession: CMA would block a Waystar merger just like Microsoft – and it hurts Britain June 2, 2023 No spoilers, I promise. Succession builds towards its climax. Logan Roy, played by a full tilt Brian Cox, is trying to finalise a merger between his media conglomerate Waystar Royco – a hybrid of News Corporation and Disney – and the up and coming tech business GoJo. Imagine the final scenes. Months of globe-trotting negotiations [...]
Sticky inflation and regulatory pressure push UK deals to lowest level since 2016 June 2, 2023 Deals in the UK have slumped to their lowest level since 2016 amid sticky inflation and regulatory pressure.