Former Thomas Cook boss says she was forced out over digital direction October 23, 2019 A former Thomas Cook chief executive has said disagreements with the company’s chairman over the future of the company led to her effective dismissal in 2014. Harriet Green told the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Committee today she was “incredibly sad” when she was pushed out by former chairman Frank Meysman after three years in [...]
KPMG in exclusive talks to sell pensions arm to private equity firm for more than £200m October 23, 2019 KPMG today confirmed it is in exclusive talks to sell its pensions advisory arm to private equity firm Exponent. The Big Four firm is in discussions to sell its pensions unit to the former Quorn-owner for more than £200m, Sky News reported. Read more: KPMG launches £100m cost-cutting programme The division has more than 20 [...]
MPs slam ‘inconceivable’ judgement of Thomas Cook auditor EY October 22, 2019 Thomas Cook’s auditor, EY, has faced a barrage of criticism from MPs, who called it “inconceivable” that accountants judged it a sustainable business in the year leading to its collapse. Bosses at EY and PwC, two of the so-called big four accountancy firms, were hauled in front of the business select committee this morning as [...]
Stop taking Britain’s glittering fintech status for granted October 22, 2019 The preaviling narrative in the UK is that the Europeans were deeply disappointed by the 2016 Brexit referendum result, and have been imploring Britain to think again. And, indeed, some have. But, just like British Leave voters in 2016, many Europeans regard Brexit as a unique opportunity for their own countries. Over recent months, I [...]
Thomson Reuters defends boss following reports of hunt for successor October 21, 2019 Thomson Reuters has thrown its support behind chief executive Jim Smith following reports the company has hired an executive search firm to pick his successor. The media conglomerate is said to have appointed search firm Spencer Stuart to draw up a shortlist of candidates, with co-chief operating officer Neil Materson slated as an internal contender. [...]
Wirecard hires KPMG to inspect accounting, days after dismissing calls for independent audit October 21, 2019 German payments giant Wirecard has hired KPMG to conduct an independent audit, in a bid to address claims its finance team had tried to inflate its reported sales and profits. The announcement was enough to push shares up 6.7 per cent this morning. It comes days after chairman Wulf Matthias dismissed calls for such an [...]
PwC accused of conflict of interest over advice given to Thomas Cook October 20, 2019 PwC has been accused of a conflict of interest for advising Thomas Cook executives on their pay and bonuses while it was also the auditor of the now-defunct travel firm. The Big Four firm audited Thomas Cook’s accounts between 2008 and 2016. Its accounts show PwC also earned £4m providing “recruitment and remuneration” advice to [...]
Afreximbank IPO: African bank confirms plans to list in London October 16, 2019 An African trade finance group has confirmed its plans to plough ahead with a listing in London, giving a boost to the capital’s ailing initial public offering (IPO) market. The African Export-Import Bank, which provides trade finance for large infrastructure projects across the continent, is hoping to raise $250m (£196m) in its float on the [...]
Housing market ‘in limbo’ as London house prices drop 1.4 per cent October 16, 2019 London house prices booked a steep 1.4 per cent annual drop in August as UK house prices grew at a lower level than last year, according to the latest data. While UK house prices posted annual growth of 1.3 per cent to beat that of 0.8 per cent in July, growth dipped below last year’s [...]
UK unemployment rate rises as Brexit fears hit labour market October 15, 2019 The UK’s unemployment rate rose in the latest quarter, according to data released today, coming off a long running 45-year low as Brexit hit the labour market. Unemployed workers rose by 0.1 percentage points compared to the previous quarter to 3.9 per cent between June and August, Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures showed. Read [...]