Don’t fear an increasing minimum wage – it helps the country’s poorest June 11, 2015 The great challenge for the government over the next five years is to raise productivity and living standards, while also continuing in its efforts to cut the deficit. Significant reform to planning, skills, tax and regulation will all be necessary. But one regulation which should not be abolished is the National Minimum Wage (NMW). When [...]
Old Mutual to sell stake in US asset manager June 9, 2015 OLD MUTUAL is preparing to sell a further stake in OM Asset Management (OMAM), the boutique asset manager it spun off in a float on the New York Stock Exchange last year. The Anglo-South African investment, savings, insurance and banking group, which is listed on the FTSE 100, yesterday said it would use the proceeds [...]
City Moves for 9 June 2015 | Who’s switching jobs June 8, 2015 Deloitte Jonathan Gray has been appointed partner in the business advisory firm’s London-based financial services consultancy practice. A fintech expert, he has over 20 years’ experience working across retail banking, wealth management, credit cards and insurance. Tilney Bestinvest The investment and financial planning group has appointed Stuart Layzell as chief financial officer. He began his [...]
From the “Gatwick gusher” to Greece via Alton Towers: Five charts that sum up the week June 5, 2015 Greece missed a huge repayment to the IMF, there was an update from Gatwick's answer to Dallas and a new study showed love doesn't come cheap. Here are five charts that sum up the week: Greek stocks suffered after Athens missed its deadline The Greek debt crisis riled European markets as the cash-strapped country hovered [...]
City Moves for 5 June 2015 | Who’s switching jobs June 4, 2015 AIG The insurer has announced the appointment of Angus Marshall as mergers & acquisitions (M&A) manager for the UK. He joined AIG in 2013 as an M&A underwriter. Marshall has also held positions in PwC’s international tax and M&A practice and in Norton Rose Fulbright’s private M&A division. Edmond de Rothschild Philippe Jouard has been [...]
DVLA changes to complicate car hire rules: Counterpart driving licences are being abolished and renters must register online June 2, 2015 Hiring a car abroad can be a hassle – with costs, paperwork, forward planning and strange roads to be taken into consideration. But alongside cutting costs, drivers should also be aware of the DVLA’s changes around driving licences. The burden of carrying a paper counterpart driving licence when hiring a car abroad will be [...]
City Moves for 2 June 2015 | Who’s switching jobs June 1, 2015 DTZ The commercial real estate services provider has announced three appointments to its data centres team. Mark Trevor joins as senior director, Begoña Cerdan joins as a director, and Michael Hunter joins as an associate director in its London office. Lloyds Bank Andrew Charnley has been appointed regional head of the trade and working capital [...]
Tax Freedom Day has come: You’re finally working for yourself May 31, 2015 Congratulations – you, and the rest of the UK, have collectively paid off your taxes for the year, and it only took you 150 days to do it. Every year, the Adam Smith Institute calculates Tax Freedom Day – the first day of the year when the average person stops working for the government [...]
Remote working: Ensuring an easy ride when employees work from home May 31, 2015 Even if they can sort the trust issue, there are still some key legal considerations for employers. We have become information junkies. The web is booming, thousands of apps come into being each month, and we have constant entertainment feeds to read and video clips to watch. And now, information has turned inwards – [...]
Banks in scramble for Barclays’ coveted broking ticket as Deutsche and Credit Suisse invited to re-pitch May 27, 2015 Barclays, the international London-based bank led by Antony Jenkins, has decided to put its broking mandate up for review after four years. The group is currently served by Deutsche and Credit Suisse as joint brokers. A source close to the bank, which is valued at around £45bn, said yesterday the decision to look for new [...]