Six things you need to know about the new banking standards council May 19, 2014 Sir Richard Lambert’s report on banking standards will, he hopes, trigger a big shift in the way banks hold their own behaviour to account as they try to restore their reputations. His recommendations today have changed slightly since his last update in February, but he has stuck to his call for an independent body, [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 09 May 2014 May 8, 2014 FINANCIAL TIMES Apple in talks for $3.2bn Beats deal Apple will acquire Beats’ streaming music service, which launched this year, and its audio equipment business, which includes its brand of headphones and audio equipment. The Beats management team will report to Mr Cook, sources said. Apple and Beats did not comment. The deal is likely [...]
Watchdog call for clawbacks April 23, 2014 BRITAIN’S reporting watchdog wants all listed companies to claw back bonuses from top staff who fail to perform. Clawback rules, which have been adopted by the banks, would be extended to all FTSE firms under the Financial Reporting Council’s plans. The FRC also said firms should explain more clearly what they will do when investors [...]
ACCA Comment: Why big data matters for accountants April 17, 2014 New technologies are carving out novel career opportunities THE BIG data revolution is fast becoming the gold rush of the twenty-first century, and everyone is eager to harness the opportunities it has brought with it. Reams of data are being produced every second from phones, credit cards, online interactions, infrastructure and tablets. The data produced [...]
ACCA Comment: Why big data matters for accountants April 16, 2014 New technologies are carving out novel career opportunities THE BIG data revolution is fast becoming the gold rush of the twenty-first century, and everyone is eager to harness the opportunities it has brought with it. Reams of data are being produced every second from phones, credit cards, online interactions, infrastructure and tablets. The data produced [...]
China’s demand for gold to keep soaring despite easing economy April 15, 2014 THE RAPID increase in Chinese demand for gold is set to continue even as the economy’s growth moderates, according to forecasts released by the World Gold Council this morning. The size of the Chinese gold market will increase by another quarter by 2017 according to the outlook, having quadrupled in the decade between 2003 and [...]
The boardroom debate needs to move beyond gender April 10, 2014 WEAK and ineffectual boards are a risk to the health of their companies and to the whole UK economy. As the Flowers chairmanship of Co-op Bank showed, a board that does not contain the right mix of skills and experience will not be able to prevent mistakes from happening. We need financial and technical experts [...]
Shareholders to vote on bosses’ pay across EU April 9, 2014 SHAREHOLDERS across the EU will get more power over executives’ pay packages, after the European Commission backed rules for a binding vote on remuneration. The move brings the rest of the EU more closely in line with British practices – in the UK, investors were given a legal say on pay last year. Listed companies [...]
Russian gold glitters in face of Ukraine conflict March 17, 2014 The geopolitical tensions between Russia and the West over Ukraine are boosting the gold price and benefitting Russian miners, according to Canaccord Genuity today. The broker has upgraded its recommendations on Russian gold producers Polymetal International and Petropavlovsk to “buy”, as a result of its bullish view on the yellow metal and a weaker currency, [...]
Letters to the Editor – 17/03 – Science startups, Best of Twitter March 16, 2014 Science startups [Re: Why Britain’s scientists are failing at business, Friday] Tim Farron is right to highlight some of the challenges facing all entrepreneurs in this country, but the idea that Britain’s scientific community is failing at business is simply not accurate. Reports estimate that UK universities produced more than 3,000 companies in 2011. And [...]