Ren Baletti CA on why EDF will be powering the UK’s transformation towards zero-emissions July 1, 2021 The electric vehicle revolution is finally charging ahead. EDF’s Ren Baletti CA tells Ryan Herman why the utility giant will be powering the UK’s transformation towards a zero-emissions economy. This article first appeared in ICAS’ CA magazine. The car industry is often seen as a bellwether of our economy. In January 2021, figures from the [...]
Auto industry calls for battery gigafactory push ahead of Nissan announcement June 29, 2021 The UK auto industry has today called for the government to invest in a string of battery gigafactories or risk tens of thousands of job losses. The calls come amid reports that car giant Nissan will this week lay out plans to build such a plant in Sunderland, in what would be a huge vote [...]
Accounting watchdog opens probe into Greensill auditor June 28, 2021 The UK’s accounting regulator has opened an investigation into the auditor of collapsed supply chain finance firm Greensill. The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) today said it had launched a probe into Saffery Champness for its audit of Greensill’s financial statements in 2019. It will also scrutinise PwC over its 2019 audit of Wyelands Bank, which [...]
Billions could be added to regional economies by tackling skills gaps June 28, 2021 New research suggests that addressing skills gaps within the financial, professional and business services (FPBS) sector could boost its yearly output to levels 12% larger than those observed today, equivalent to £38bn annually by 2038, with much of these gains helping to support regional levelling-up across the UK. The report, ‘Skills for future success’, from [...]
Banking’s got talent? Digital disrupts the City’s skills requirements June 24, 2021 The world of financial services is changing fast, with the trend towards digital provision accelerated by the Covid-19 pandemic. From the growing use of mobile banking to the surging interest in fields such as artificial intelligence (AI), technology’s transformative impact has all sorts of consequences. One of those is on the evolving mix of skills [...]
Accounting watchdog pushes for KPMG to be fined £15m over Silentnight sale June 21, 2021 Accounting watchdog pushes for KPMG to be fined £15m over Silentnight sale
WIBF’s ACT Research Programme finds that women are held to higher standards across financial services compared to their male counterparts June 16, 2021 A new report published today by Women in Banking and Finance (view here) finds that women struggled if they did not perform consistently well compared to what they recognise as mediocre men in the City of London who are surviving in financial services in high numbers, for a number of different reasons which include social [...]
Big Four lobbying may dilute Government’s audit reform, says ex-accounting watchdog June 14, 2021 Big Four lobbying will dilute Government's audit reform, says ex-accounting watchdog
Paris and Berlin look to dilute EU’s strict bank capital rules June 9, 2021 France and Germany are attempting to dilute the EU’s long-awaited change to banking regulation. The European Commission is expected to introduce a new capital minimum, which would make it harder for banks to use their own internal calculations to decide the size of their capital base, in the autumn. Paris, Berlin, Copenhagen and Luxembourg are [...]
Audit reform – Two minds are better than one June 2, 2021 The UK might not have won Eurovision 2021, indeed it suffered the humiliation of scoring nil points, but it has certainly led the current race on audit and wider corporate governance reform. The Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) issued its consultation ‘Restoring trust in audit and corporate governance’ in March with a [...]