Interserve share price dives after being landed with £40m bill from accountants PwC EY and consultants Oliver Wyman FTI Consulting April 30, 2018 Under-fire accountants and consultants are to net almost £40m in fees as troubled outsourcer Interserve pulls itself back from the brink. Big Four bean counters such as PwC and EY as well as management consultants FTI Consulting and Oliver Wyman were paid £13.9m during 2017 with a further £25m to be paid in 2018, it [...]
Fashion retailer East to cease trading in May with loss of nearly 300 jobs April 23, 2018 High Street retailer East is due to cease trading next week after administrators failed to find a buyer, City A.M. can reveal. Almost 300 employees will be made redundant when the chain stops trading on 4 May. This follows the redundancies of 27 staff after the company fell into administration in January. Administrators at FRP [...]
KPMG could face questions from auditor watchdog after Conviviality’s downfall April 22, 2018 The auditor of wine retailer and supplier Conviviality could face questions over its role in the company’s collapse. The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) confirmed to City A.M. that it was “looking closely at the reported accounting issues at Conviviality”. “If the relevant threshold tests are met in relation to accountants at the company and/or its [...]
House of Fraser brings in advisers to consider store closures April 19, 2018 House of Fraser has become the latest retailer to look into store closures and rent reductions. The department store chain has brought in advisers from KPMG, Sky News reported, putting a company voluntary arrangement (CVA) on the table. This could involve closing some of the company’s 59 stores, as well as reducing rents at other [...]
DEBATE: Should the weaker inflation figures stop the Bank of England from raising rates next month? April 19, 2018 Should the weaker inflation figures stop the Bank of England from raising rates next month? Samuel Tombs, chief UK economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, says YES. Inflation’s rapid fall to 2.5 per cent in March – well below the MPC’s 2.8 per cent forecast – from 3.0 per cent at the start of this year should [...]
KPMG has South Africa contracts cancelled following spate of scandals April 17, 2018 South Africa’s auditor general has cancelled all contracts with big four accounting firm KPMG after a series of major scandals. The audit giant had been implicated in the scandal that led to the collapse of storied London public relations firm Bell Pottinger in September. Read more: Demise of a PR giant: The inside story of [...]
Monarch review launched amid heightened risk of further airline failures April 16, 2018 A government-commissioned review will be kicked-off today following Monarch Airlines’ collapse last October. The Airline Insolvency Review has published a call for evidence to examine reforms needed to ensure passengers are protected when airlines fail. As demand for air travel rises, the risk to passengers of a similar collapse happening again has risen, those conducting [...]
UK venture capital investment slumps in Q1, though London fintech is still on top April 11, 2018 Venture capital (VC) investment has slowed considerably in the first quarter of 2018, according to a new study from advisory firm KPMG. VC investment in the first three months of the year rose just above $1bn (£705m), well short of the $2.8bn invested in the fourth quarter of 2017. The dip follows a blockbuster 2017, [...]
After a bumpy end to 2017 what is the outlook for the London listing market in 2018? April 9, 2018 Nearly £3bn worth of initial public offerings (IPOs) were pulled in London at the end of last year. Deals that were announced but then failed to make it to market include debt collector Cabot Credit Management, professional services business TMF Group and phone mast company Arqiva. In the six months to December companies that had [...]
Legal & General boss Sir John Kingman in line to spearhead audit watchdog probe April 4, 2018 The chairman of Legal & General is on the shortlist to lead an investigation into Britain’s top accounting regulator, according to reports. Sir John Kingman, previously a prominent figure in Whitehall as Treasury second permanent secretary, is among those being considered to spearhead a review of the Financial Reporting Council (FRC). The candidate could be [...]