The CMA’s retail banking recommendations have been slammed by experts addressing parliament’s Treasury Select Committee June 7, 2016 The Competition and Markets Authority's (CMA) work on the retail banking market is a failed opportunity, MPs have been told. One challenger bank boss said that the concentration risk in the market will take “decades” to unwind, speaking at a Treasury Select Committee hearing earlier today. Meanwhile, a former Competition Commission member said that the provisional recommendations issued [...]
Competition and Markets Authority will investigate Icap’s deal with Tullett Prebon unless concerns are addressed June 7, 2016 The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said today it will refer a proposed deal between brokers Icap and Tullett Prebon for an in-depth investigation if the companies do not address the watchdog's competition concerns relating to broking of oil products. Icap announced last November that it was selling its global voice-broking and information business to Tullett Prebon, [...]
Megabrew: US Department of Justice set to give AB InBev green light for SABMiller deal June 2, 2016 The US Department of Justice is set to approve Anheuser-Busch InBev's takeover of British drinks giant SABMiller. The news follows the announcement on Tuesday that the Competition Commission of South Africa has provisionally approved the £71bn deal, which was agreed last October. It has been widely reported in US media that the antitrust regulator is poised [...]
Why leaving the EU will undermine London’s global competitiveness June 2, 2016 London is at the forefront of the huge changes buffeting our society and our economy, as we confront and cope with the realities of globalisation. India and China, and the emerging economies of Indonesia, Singapore, Vietnam, Brazil and others, are overturning Europe’s traditional dominance. In Africa, Senegal, Uganda, Tanzania, Kenya and Ethiopia all had growth [...]
Tyrie writes to regulators over crowdfunding fears June 1, 2016 Treasury Committee chair Andrew Tyrie has raised fears of insufficient regulation around crowdfunding in letters to the chief executives of the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulatory. In letters dated 1 June, Tyrie has asked the regulators to question whether they are paying enough attention to the risks associated with the growth of peer-to-peer [...]
EU membership matters to Britain’s advanced manufacturers – and it’s about far more than the Single Market June 1, 2016 A car consists of elements and components that have been sourced from right across the globe. The metal that forms the panels will have been quarried as an ore in one place, been through a foundry in another before being pressed into shape somewhere else. It will then be fitted with an engine that has [...]
Megabrew: South African regulator provisionally clears AB InBev’s £71bn takeover of SABMiller May 31, 2016 Anheuser-Busch InBev’s megabrew takeover of SABMiller took a step closer to completion today after the Competition Commission of South Africa provisionally approved the £71bn deal. The South African antitrust regulator has recommended to the country’s Competition Tribunal, which will make the final decision on the merger, that the proposed tie-up be approved with conditions. The conditions [...]
One year after Amber Rudd challenged the Big Six energy providers over pricing, there is still more to do to get a better deal for energy consumers May 31, 2016 One year ago, energy secretary Amber Rudd wrote to the Big Six to demand why hard-pressed consumers weren’t seeing bigger reductions in their gas and electricity bills. Fresh to her role in charge of the department for energy and climate change, she challenged suppliers to explain why they had failed to pass on significant wholesale [...]
Why the City of London will be better off if we leave the European Union May 31, 2016 Too much of the debate about what the European Union referendum means for the City has been frustratingly narrow and short-term, confined to the immediate financial implications of leaving. Far too little attention has been paid to the longer-term health of the City, in particular the implications of remaining inside the EU. Inside the EU, [...]
Privatising the Land Registry sounds like a great idea – but this is why it’s not May 27, 2016 It not uncommon to read about government policy decisions and count yourself lucky that you’re not the one making them. But when it comes to the current debate over whether to privatise the Land Registry, while a good idea on the surface, rejecting this proposal should be a no-brainer. It may not be a conundrum on [...]