Legal eagles not impressed with average price suggestions August 25, 2016 The professional body for solicitors has today slammed calls for firms to publish their average costs. Last week, the Legal Services Consumer Panel (LSCP) responded to the interim Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) report into the legal services market and suggested red tape should be introduced to make publishing average fees mandatory. Although noting the Society wanted to improve [...]
CMA proposals to hit bank profits in latest squeeze on sector August 19, 2016 Banks should prepare for another squeeze on profits thanks to the latest recommendations to boost competition in the sector. Ratings agency Fitch said today proposals from the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to encourage customers to switch bank accounts would put even more pressure on bottom lines at the UK's top high street lenders. The central [...]
Intercontinental Exchange questions UK competition watchdog concerns over Trayport takeover August 18, 2016 The owner of the New York Stock Exchange has questioned the justification of the British competition authority’s concerns over its Trayport takeover. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) should consider reversing its $650m (£495m) deal for Trayport, a commodities trading software operation. Read more: US rival pulled London Stock Exchange [...]
Competition watchdog threatens Intercontinental Exchange’s Trayport takeover August 16, 2016 The Competition watchdog has thrown into doubt Intercontinental Exchange's takeover of commodities trading software company Trayport. The Competition and Markets Authority said today that the $650m deal could result in less competition for wholesale European utilities trades. It issued a list of possible remedies, which includes a forced sale. The CMA is worried about higher fees for [...]
Ryan Lochte and US swimmers robbed at gunpoint in Rio August 14, 2016 American six-time Olympic swimming champion Ryan Lochte was left shaken but unharmed after being robbed at gunpoint in Rio de Janeiro in the early hours of Sunday morning. Lochte, who helped Team USA win gold in the 4 x 200m freestyle relay last week, was with colleagues Gunnar Bentz, Jack Conger and Jimmy Feigen when their [...]
Bank of England considers easing challenger burdens August 14, 2016 The Bank of England is considering easing regulatory burdens on challenger banks, amid increasing pressure from the small lenders. Challengers are concerned about capital requirements imposed on them, which they say disadvantage them to bigger players and stop them from being able to offer loans and credits to small business. There was anger among the [...]
Digital challenger bank Mondo just got its banking licence August 11, 2016 Another new challenger bank has been given the green light by the financial regulator in an attempt to give the big banks a run for their money. Digital challenger Mondo, a smartphone-only app, has been granted a banking licence which gives it free-reign to offer customers the full range of services offered by the traditional high street banks – although it [...]
The Cambrian Explosion: What does the CMA report mean for alt fi? August 11, 2016 After a two-year investigation into retail and SME banking, this week the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) mandated the adoption of Open Banking by early 2018. Open Banking will be underpinned by secure authorised data gateways called application programming interfaces (APIs), the pipes of modern software technology. Just as our Android or Apple smartphones opened [...]
Paysafe looks to pocket profits by bolstering its digital wallet business August 10, 2016 Payment solutions company Paysafe has revealed it hopes to rake in the cash from its digital wallet business, including launching a new mobile-enabled wallet in September. Joel Leonoff, Paysafe president and chief executive, described the product in the pipeline as being focused on generic goods, including pharmaceutical products, groceries and alcohol. "What we're building and what we're [...]
Unauthorised overdraft charges can cost consumers more than payday loans, according to research from an online current account specialist August 10, 2016 Overdraft fees can cost as much as five times more than a pay-day loan according to figures from digital current account provider Ffrees. Borrowing £100 for a month on a short term loan can incur charges of as much as £20, but taking the same amount from an unauthorised overdraft could see consumers stung for £100, [...]