Brexit: Forced relocation of derivatives clearing from City to Frankfurt would only hurt EU, LSE warns June 7, 2021 In case the European Union does press ahead with the forced relocation of Euro derivates clearing from London to European capitals, costs for customers will jump and would ultimately put EU firms at a competitive disadvantage compared to their international rivals, according to the London Stock Exchange. “Restricting access to the EU economy and the [...]
French regulator fines Google €220m over advertising practices June 7, 2021 Google has agreed to pay €220m to settle a French investigation over its abuse of power in online advertising. The French Competition Authority said Google has been unfairly sending business to its advertising server and its online advertising auction house, at an unfair advantage to its rivals. It came after a complaint lodged by Rupert [...]
Donald Trump banned from Facebook for at least two years June 4, 2021 Former US President Donald Trump has been banned from Facebook until at least 2023 after months of debate. The social media company’s independent oversight board upheld Trump’s decision last month, which was enforced in the wake of the Capitol riots over concerns his posts were inciting violence. However the board ruled the decision was “not [...]
Facebook hit with double data crackdown as UK and EU open competition probes June 4, 2021 Facebook is facing a two-pronged attack after UK and EU regulators both opened investigations into alleged monopolistic behaviour in the tech giant’s use of advertising data. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) will examine whether the social media platform has gained an unfair advantage over rivals through how it gathers and uses data for classified [...]
AstraZeneca and Alexion swap senior staff ahead of $39bn deal close June 4, 2021 Drugmaker AstraZeneca has poached Alexion Pharmaceutical’s chief financial officer ahead of its acquisition, as the pharma firms shuffle their senior staff. Joining with an £850,000 base salary, Aradhana Sarin will join when the deal closes as both an executive director and chief financial officer if the pharmaceutical firm’s deal for Alexion Pharmaceuticals goes to plan. [...]
Beware the unintended consequences of messing with the secondary ticketing market June 4, 2021 There are few things in life that command unanimous agreement. One is that everyone is delighted that the UK events industry will be starting to return to normal this summer. The return of theatres, concerts, and live events of all kinds will be welcomed by fans. This return is also desperately needed with the entire [...]
New tech regulation mustn’t be allowed to stifle innovation June 3, 2021 There is scarcely any market that could not be described as digital in 2021. In ten years time, the phrase ‘digital market’ will be, effectively, redundant. We should be concerned, then, by the creation of a powerful new regulator with a remit to cover all ‘digital markets’. Read more: UK says any global tax deal [...]
What does a €50 carbon price mean for European companies? June 3, 2021 Earlier this month, the EU carbon price moved above €50 per tonne for the first time ever. The price is now more than double its level prior to the pandemic, with a sharp rise in recent months. What is the EU carbon price? The EU Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) is designed to put a price [...]
Watchdog clears Ebay’s $9.2bn classified ads deal with Adevinta June 3, 2021 The competition watchdog has cleared Ebay’s $9.2bn (£6.5bn) sale of its classified ads business to Norwegian rival Adevinta. In March the two companies said they would sell off three British divisions to secure regulatory approval for the tie-up. Adevinta said it will divest Shpock, while US ecommerce giant Ebay will sell Gumtree and Motors.co.uk. The [...]
Audit reform – Two minds are better than one June 2, 2021 The UK might not have won Eurovision 2021, indeed it suffered the humiliation of scoring nil points, but it has certainly led the current race on audit and wider corporate governance reform. The Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) issued its consultation ‘Restoring trust in audit and corporate governance’ in March with a [...]