How to grow a business from a bean January 26, 2014 Annabel Palmer talks student life and staple diets with James Eder, founder of marketing firm The Beans Group IN THE age-old debate over whether entrepreneurship is innate or can be taught, James Eder – founder of The Beans Group – makes a strong case for the former. At 13, he and his brother Michael created [...]
US judge bars Big Four China units January 23, 2014 CHINESE units of the global Big Four accounting firms should be suspended from auditing US-listed companies for six months, a judge in the United States ruled, in an escalation in a long-running dispute over regulators’ access to documents. In a harshly worded 112-page ruling, Securities and Exchange Commission administrative law Judge Cameron Elliot censured the [...]
City Moves for 24 January 2014 | Who’s switching jobs January 23, 2014 SEI The investment management firm has announced the appointment of Brett Williams as UK managing director of its wealth platform. He joins from LW2 Private Equity Partnership, where he was a partner. Prior to that, he held senior roles at Cofunds, Selestia and Skandia UK. PwC The professional services firm has appointed Philip Smith to its [...]
Quercus puts itself up for sale as losses mount January 22, 2014 QUERCUS, the independent publisher behind Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, yesterday unexpectedly announced that it is up for sale. In a surprise stock market announcement, the Baker Street-based firm said that it had appointed mergers and acquisitions specialists Livingstone Partners to advise on the sale process. The firm said it believed it was “in the [...]
City Moves for 23 January 2014 | Who’s switching jobs January 22, 2014 Legal & General Martin Brookes has joined Legal & General Capital as director of investment strategy. He previously spent 27 years at the Prudential, where he was most recently director of portfolio management in its portfolio management group. KPMG The professional services firm has appointed Victor Abrams as a special adviser in its tax value chain management [...]
Morrisons’ tax boss arrested in watchdog probe January 20, 2014 MORRISONS’ treasurer and head of tax is under investigation by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) for insider trading ahead of its £216m tie-up with Ocado last year, in yet another blow for the troubled supermarket. Paul Coyle was suspended from his post after being arrested in December in Harrogate by the Yorkshire police in connection [...]
Watchdog to formally probe KPMG audit of troubled bank January 20, 2014 KPMG’S work on the Co-operative Bank’s accounts will be formally investigated, the Financial Reporting Council said yesterday. The watchdog said it will probe KPMG’s approval and audit of the Co-op Bank’s 2012 results, following the bank’s revelation last year that it had a £1.5bn capital hole. The FRC, which has powers to fine and suspend [...]
KPMG takes stake in smartphone app maker in technology push January 20, 2014 KPMG began its push into the technology business yesterday by taking a minority stake in Chelsea Apps Factory. The accountancy firm hopes to sign four or five more firms this year to its Digital Innovation Network, eventually bringing in 20 to 30. Fast-growing firms in cloud computing, social networking and data analytics will benefit from [...]
City Moves for 17 January 2014 | Who’s switching jobs January 16, 2014 Baker Tilly The professional services firm has announced the appointment of Rob Donaldson as head of corporate finance. He previously held roles at KPMG Corporate Finance. Aldermore The bank has made two appointments to its asset finance team. Emma Irving joins as head of materials handling from BNP Paribas. Nova Everidge joins as head of new business [...]
Late dash for online gifts over Christmas gives UK Mail a boost January 15, 2014 LAST-MINUTE online shopping over Christmas helped boost revenues at delivery company UK Mail, the firm said yesterday. Parcel volumes were up 15 per cent in the final three months of the year, and mail volumes also rose from last year’s levels. “It is clear from weekly volume patterns that shoppers were, more than ever before, [...]