FCA gets green light to take insurance giants to Supreme Court over Corona policies October 5, 2020 A High Court in London approved the FCA’s request to let the Supreme Court decide on the matter in which the market regulator is seeking clarification on the wording of numerous insurance policies in relation to claims filed as a result of the pandemic.
Walmart confirms Asda sale to billionaire UK brothers in £6.8bn deal October 2, 2020 Asda is back in British ownership after Walmart today agreed a sale to the Blackburn-based Issa brothers in a £6.8bn deal.
Rebel water companies get partial support in fight over price cuts September 29, 2020 Four water companies have today won some critical support in their fight against proposals that would force them to slash household bills. As a result of the provisional ruling from the UK’s competition watchdog, Anglian, Bristol, Northumbrian and Yorkshire will be able to spend an additional £214m in investment into the UK’s creaking water infrastructure. [...]
Ex-Sainsbury’s boss Mike Coupe joins NHS Test and Trace September 29, 2020 Former Sainsbury’s chief executive Mike Coupe has been appointed as a director at the UK’s beleaguered coronavirus testing service. Coupe, who was once caught on camera singing “we’re in the money” in relation to a since canned merger between Sainsbury’s and Asda, has been appointed testing director of NHS Test and Trace. The former supermarket [...]
Could decarbonisation be the mega-trend of the next decade? September 28, 2020 US equities have led global stock markets higher over the past decade. In the last ten years, US equities have returned a stellar 292%, compared to just 73% for global equities (as measured by the MSCI USA Index and MSCI AC World ex US Index respectively, in US dollar terms, as at 31 August 2020). [...]
Walmart selects billionaire brothers as preferred bidders for Asda September 28, 2020 US retail giant Walmart has selected a consortium led by the billionaire brothers behind petrol station chain EG Group with private equity firm TDR Capital as the preferred bidder to buy Asda. The deal would value the UK supermarket chain at more than £6.5bn, Sky News reported. The broadcaster said that Mohsin and Zuber Issa, [...]
Former BT boss tapped to lead search for Huawei replacement September 23, 2020 Former BT chief executive and trade minister Lord Ian Livingston has been tapped to find alternative telecoms providers to replace Huawei equipment in the UK’s 5G networks. Livingston has been named as chair of a new government task force that will seek to diversify the country’s telecoms supply chain and reduce reliance on high-risk vendors. [...]
Private equity firm Lone Star quits race to buy Asda September 22, 2020 US private equity firm Lone Star Funds has abandoned the bidding war over British supermarket giant Asda, leaving rival asset manager Apollo as its likely suitor. The two private equity firms entered a showdown for the UK’s third-biggest grocery chain last month, after US owner Walmart opened bidding for a majority stake in Asda. The [...]
Big Tech’s market might in five charts September 21, 2020 The largest US technology stocks – Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, Facebook and Google (Alphabet) – known as the “FAMAGs”, tumbled sharply at the beginning of this month, after supercharging the US stock market from the depths of the Covid-pandemic in March. These “superstar” firms have largely benefitted from the economic fallout of the crisis, as more people [...]
UK watchdog to accuse KPMG of breaches in Carillion audit September 21, 2020 The UK’s accountancy watchdog has said it has delivered an initial report of KPMG’s audit of collapsed outsourcer Carillion, indicating it found a number of breaches made by the firm. After a preliminary investigation, the Financial Reporting Council would either close the enforcement case or, if breaches have been found, deliver an initial investigation report. [...]