FRC Chair-in-waiting grilled over holding seven other board roles July 15, 2026 MPs have raised concerns over whether the former chief executive of Virgin Money can realistically juggle her role as Chair of the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) alongside seven other board and chair positions. Dame Jayne-Anne Gadhia was named by the government on Monday as the next Chair of the accounting watchdog, set to take over [...]
Former Virgin Money chief set to lead Financial Reporting Council July 13, 2026 The former chief executive of Virgin Money has been selected as the government’s preferred candidate to lead the UK’s accountancy regulator following the expected departure of Sir Jan du Plessis. Dame Jayne-Anne Gadhia was named by Business and Trade Secretary Peter Kyle to replace du Plessis for a four-year term overseeing the Financial Reporting Council [...]
Making free trade a reality: The UK-GCC strategic dialogue July 13, 2026 The UK-GCC Free Trade Agreement (FTA), agreed upon in May 2026, promises greater resilience to unprecedented rifts in international relations that would, until recently, have been unimaginable. In our previous analysis of this dynamic, prior to the signing of the FTA, we observed that the UK-GCC FTA was a response to troubling seismic shifts among the world’s [...]
Battersea Power Station misreporting claims scrutinised by accounting watchdog July 10, 2026 The City’s accounting watchdog is scrutinising claims of financial misreporting at Battersea Power Station after the former chief executive alleged he was dismissed from his role for blowing the whistle on inflated property valuations, City AM understands. The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) is reportedly looking at claims made by the former boss of the iconic [...]
How the boss of Zilch became UK fintech’s power broker July 8, 2026 Last year, Zilch founder Philip Belamant sat down with then-boss of Monzo, TS Anil. As the two friends caught up, Belamant was fizzing with ideas to turn his $2bn British fintech into a global powerhouse, according to sources familiar with the matter. Not long ago, Zilch had set up shop across the pond, and Belamant [...]
Forvis Mazars and top partner hit with £600,000 fine for audit failings July 2, 2026 The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) has hit accountancy giant Forvis Mazars and a top partner at the firm, David Allen, with a combined £610,537 for audit failings relating to a retail firm listed on the London Stock Exchange’s main market. The FRC said it has issued the fines following an investigation into both Forvis Mazars [...]
Gold set for worst quarter in over 10 years as retail interest cools July 1, 2026 Gold is poised to enter its worst quarterly performance in over ten years, as retail investor enthusiasm fades and higher US interest rates loom, a far cry from last year’s continuous record-breaking prices. The price of the precious metal fell below $4,000 per troy ounce on Wednesday, hitting $3,978.5. On Tuesday it fell to $3,942.9, [...]
Natwest hit with £250m lawsuit tied to Thurrock Council scandal July 1, 2026 Natwest could be on the hook for more than a quarter of a billion pounds for allegedly aiding a businessman in secretly transferring funds from his investment firm. The FTSE 100 giant’s subsidiary – the Royal Bank of Scotland – has been engulfed in the collapse of Rockfire Group, which was triggered by a fraud [...]
Barclays splashes £750m on Canary Wharf base in ‘strong endorsement’ of London June 30, 2026 Barclays has taken control of its global headquarters based out of Canary Wharf in a £750m deal hailed as a “strong endorsement” of the financial district and the capital itself. The blue-chip lender has entered a long-term leasehold interest agreement with Canary Wharf Group that grants the bank to use the property – based at [...]
Burnham’s choice of Chancellor will define his premiership June 29, 2026 Economic policy is so fraught that Burnham must choose from various paths. Retaining Reeves means warmed-over Starmerism; Miliband would be a sign that the Labour Party is tacking left; and choosing Streeting would be an advertisement that the Blairites were getting the band back together. What signal will the next Prime Minister seek to send? [...]