Aviva: Direct Line buyout ‘firmly on track’ despite CMA investigation May 15, 2025 Aviva expects its £3.7bn acquisition of Direct Line to be completed by the middle of this year despite a new investigation by the competition watchdog into the deal. In a trading update, the insurance giant’s CEO, Amanda Blanc, said the acquisition was “firmly on track,” and cash to pay for the takeover had been ring-fenced. Yesterday, the Competition [...]
CMA must tackle Apple and Google duopoly to ‘unlock UK growth’ May 15, 2025 One of the UK’s leading left-wing think tanks has called on the government to strengthen the powers of the competition regulator to curb the dominance of tech giants like Apple and Google. It has warned that their stranglehold on app marketplaces is holding back innovation, investment, and growth in the British economy. In a new [...]
Direct Line suffers shareholder revolt over CEO’s huge pay day May 14, 2025 The group behind Direct Line has suffered a huge revolt by its shareholders over its chief executive being handed a huge pay day ahead of its planned £3.7bn takeover by Aviva. In March, City AM reported that Adam Winslow took home a pay packet of more than £7.8m for the insurance giant’s latest financial year. [...]
CMA to investigate Aviva’s £3.7bn Direct Line deal May 14, 2025 The UK’s competition watchdog has begun an investigation into insurance giant Aviva’s proposed £3.7bn acquisition of Direct Line. The Competition and Markets Authority said it had commenced its phase one inquiry to establish whether the deal would result in a “realistic prospect of a substantial lessening of competition.” The CMA has invited comment on the [...]
FCA to rip up insurance rules in drive for growth May 14, 2025 The Financial Conduct Authority has outlined plans to ditch “outdated or duplicated” insurance rules in a bid to help firms reduce costs and drive competition. The City regulator’s fresh proposals would hand firms greater responsibility over reviewing the value of their product. This would involve companies using the risks and characteristics of each individual product [...]
Google pays up as antitrust scrutiny heightens May 13, 2025 Google’s recent settlement of $1.38bn (£1.05bn) with the state of Texas marks a significant moment in the tech titan’s ongoing legal battles over both privacy violations and anti-competitive practices. The settlement, which resolves two major lawsuits filed in 2022, accused Google of secretly collecting biometric data such as facial recognition and local tracking, without user [...]
US-UK tech deal falls short: trillion-dollar talk, but little digital alignment May 13, 2025 The new US-UK tech pact may offer political optics of partnership, but falls far short of real digital alignment, exposing widening policy divergence and limited strategic substance, says Paul Armstrong The recently announced US-UK trade agreement was billed as a major reset in transatlantic cooperation, with Prime Minister Keir Starmer positioning the UK as America’s [...]
To deliver growth, Lloyd’s of London’s new CEO has to be ruthless May 12, 2025 In order for Lloyd's of London to prosper, Patrick Tiernan must be ruthless in his leadership, writes LMA CEO Sheila Cameron.
Alphabet slides as Apple eyes Google overhaul – and UK probe looms May 8, 2025 Alphabet – Google’s parent company – suffered its worst drop in shares since October on Wednesday, falling 7.5 per cent after the iPhone maker, Apple, revealed a historic sip in Safari search and hinted to a strategic shift to AI-powered rivals. This move may be the first signs of the end for Google’s long held [...]
Mark Kleinman: This is not just any retail cyber attack… May 8, 2025 Mark Kleinman is Sky News’ City Editor and the man who gets the Square Mile talking in his weekly City AM column This is not just any retail cyber attack… It’s hardly an exclusive club these days: a big listed company is the victim of a major cyber attack, compromising its systems and ability to continue serving customers. [...]