City Matters: Why the City will lose out if its fails to capitalise on London’s diversity January 12, 2014 EAGLE-EYED City workers may have already spotted this, but there are some slightly unusual adverts on the side of their buses this year. Alongside the regular adverts for London attractions and products, three buses have been specially wrapped to enable 34 organisations to proclaim that “We are all dedicated to diversity”. While commuters can be [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 10 January 2014 January 9, 2014 FINANCIAL TIMES Taxman hardens stance on disputes The UK taxman has toughened its stance on disputes with big business in response to public pressure over alleged “sweetheart” deals, companies say. Three-quarters of such groups surveyed by Clifford Chance, a law firm, said HM Revenue & Customs had “generally become more aggressive in recent years”. Santander [...]
The year in preview: Our in-depth guide January 5, 2014 City A.M.’s journalists take a wide-ranging look at what 2014 has in store for the world of finance and business BANKINGRestoring faith means costly overhaulsA CAUTIOUS optimism pervades the British and European banking system at the start of 2014. The incoming economic recovery is at last improving customers’ creditworthiness, while the hard work running down [...]
The Bank has put the brakes on Funding for Lending – Why not on Help to Buy? December 21, 2013 Threats of an overheating housing market have reached Threadneedle Street, and they’re cutting out the mortgage incentives from the Funding for Lending Scheme (FLS). This morning Bank of England governor Mark Carney said that “risks to financial stability may grow if there are further substantial and rapid increases in house prices”. FLS was launched at [...]
A classy end to a successful season of Michael Grandage December 12, 2013 THEATRE HENRY V Noël Coward theatre | By Xenobe Purvis Four Stars OVER the course of Michael Grandage’s five-play season at the Noel Coward Theatre, the venue has seen star-studded casts perform parts as diverse as spliff-smoking fairies and cross-dressing soldiers. And now it is home to Henry V, which – although offering us nothing [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 12 December 2013 December 11, 2013 FINANCIAL TIMES Nigeria’s missing $50bn oil cash A letter from the Central Bank of Nigeria suggests that the state oil company has failed to account for nearly $50bn in crude oil sold between January 2012 and July 2013 that should by law have been remitted to government coffers. The alleged shortfall amounts to 76 per [...]
We’ve neglected the Commonwealth and Britain’s prosperity has suffered December 10, 2013 AN IMPORTANT feature of the modern Commonwealth has become worryingly obscured in UK debates about its significance: intra-Commonwealth trade and investment flows between its 53 member states (about a third of the world’s population) are growing at a huge pace. Far from being a relic of Britain’s imperial past, today’s Commonwealth connects at least half [...]
The Bank has put the brakes on Funding for Lending – Why not on Help to Buy? November 28, 2013 Threats of an overheating housing market have reached Threadneedle Street, and they're cutting out the mortgage incentives from the Funding for Lending Scheme (FLS). This morning Bank of England governor Mark Carney said that "risks to financial stability may grow if there are further substantial and rapid increases in house prices". FLS was launched at [...]
Calls to whistleblower hotline for finance sector up 23 per cent November 18, 2013 THE number of calls to the Financial Conduct Authority’s so-called whistleblower hotline to report suspected malpractice rose 23 per cent last year. The FCA received 4,718 calls from staff at financial services firms in the year ending in August – up from 3,834 calls the year before, according to City law firm RPC. But RPC [...]
Twitter boosts price ahead of flotation today November 6, 2013 SOCIAL media colossus Twitter priced its initial public offering (IPO) at $26 (£16.17) per share late last night, ready to float today on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE). The pricing is a dollar higher than the upper range of the previous attempt to value the company, and suggests a total valuation for Twitter of [...]