Look to the green belt: Paper calls for radical changes to land near train stations in bid to solve housing crisis September 10, 2018 Freeing up green belt land near train stations could pave the way for the construction of 1.5m new houses, according to a report which seeks to tackle London’s chronic shortage of affordable housing. Radical proposals that call on the government to loosen development restrictions around green belt areas within a half-mile radius of train stations have been [...]
Debenhams rushes out surprise update after its shares plunge to record low September 10, 2018 Debenhams looked to quell investor concern about the company's financial situation by rushing out a surprise trading update today which showed profits were slightly below expectations. The firm shocked the market by releasing its results a month early, saying it expected profits to be within the market range of £31m to £36m, falling just short of its expected [...]
Debenhams share price tumbles as firm mulls over rescue plan September 10, 2018 Shares in high street retailer Debenhams crashed 17 per cent this morning after it emerged the firm had brought in KPMG to advise on a number of options to save the struggling company. Debenhams has had a gruelling year, announcing three profit warnings so far alongside a raft of job cuts, causing its share price to tank [...]
London house prices set to hit lowest growth levels since financial crash September 10, 2018 London house prices are set to drop 0.7 per cent next year, marking the lowest annual rate of growth in the UK’s property market since the 2008 financial crisis. Big Four accountancy firm KPMG has projected that property prices in the capital will continue to fall until 2021 in a report out today that suggests [...]
Debenhams calls in top auditors to weigh up potential insolvency September 9, 2018 Embattled department store chain Debenhams has called in Big Four accountancy firm KPMG to help carry out desperate restructuring measures which could include a controversial insolvency process. Among the contingency options currently being weighed up by KPMG is a company voluntary arrangement (CVA), which is an insolvency option that can be used to close stores [...]
City watchdog chair Charles Randell says Big Four needs to improve audit quality ‘as a matter of urgency’ September 6, 2018 City watchdog chairman Charles Randell launched a withering attack on the Big Four accountancy firms today, calling for the profession to address audit quality "as a matter of urgency". In a speech marking 10 years since the start of the financial crisis, Randell said it was “very disappointing” to see that the Financial Reporting Council’s audit [...]
Swiss bank UBS closes in on US rivals in FTSE 100 broker rankings September 3, 2018 Swiss bank UBS has closed the gap on its US rivals at the top of the FTSE 100 stockbroker ranking list for the third quarter (Q3), moving up to joint third place with 22 clients. UBS, which acts for blue chip companies such as oil major BP, mining giant BHP Billiton and consumer goods company [...]
New PwC recruits to set their own hours under flexible working scheme August 30, 2018 Accounting giant PwC has scrapped the traditional nine-to-five week in favour of flexible hours for certain roles. Applicants to the Flexible Talent Network will be able to choose a working pattern that suits them in a bid to attract more diverse talent that may have previously dismissed the firm. Employees will be appointed to projects based on their skills and [...]
Grant Thornton hit with £3m fine for Vimto audit failures August 29, 2018 Accountancy firm Grant Thornton has been fined £3m for misconduct in the auditing of the owner of soft drink Vimto and the University of Salford. Regulator the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) fined Grant Thornton and four of its senior auditors for what it said were “widespread and serious inadequacies”. The fines relate to the audits of [...]
Bank of Cyprus sells €2.8bn of bad loans to Apollo August 28, 2018 Bank of Cyprus Group has agreed the sale of €2.8bn (£2.5bn) in bad loans to US private equity giant Apollo in a deal that the bank – laid low by the Eurozone crisis – said will be “transformative”. Apollo, which manages assets worth $270bn (£209bn), will pay €1.4bn for the non-performing loan (NPL) portfolio – [...]