Investors worth $10tn shun ‘overvalued’ venture capital funds August 22, 2023 Top investors with more than $10tn in assets under management have said they will shun venture capital funds in the year ahead in a worrying signal as the UK tries to get more cash flowing from big investors into start-ups. In a new survey of 178 top institutional investors by Preqin, some 68 per cent [...]
Spike in UK car dealerships being snapped up as British firms go cheap August 20, 2023 UK car dealerships are increasingly being snapped up by overseas investors on the cheap amid a surge in dealmaking in the sector. There were around 20 overseas investments into UK dealer groups in the decade prior to 2019, while the three years post-Covid have already seen 10 transactions, with several set to be completed this [...]
EY poised to cut jobs and rein in bonus pots – reports August 17, 2023 EY is poised to slash a number of jobs and has warned staff they will face more meagre pay rises and smaller bonus pots this year as it battles with rising costs, according to reports. The Big Four firm’s UK bosses have told staff it will cut more than five per cent of its near [...]
Interest rate hikes and unsettled markets rain on private equity’s dealmaking parade August 15, 2023 Private equity dealmaking has cooled in the first six months of the year as rapid interest rate hikes and unsettled markets rained on the parade of a predicted deal frenzy, new figures have revealed. The number of private equity deals in the UK fell to 689 from 909 last year, with just 327 deals worth [...]
UK firms see audit costs climb as fines and skills shortage push up auditors fees August 7, 2023 The total amount in audit fees paid by the UK’s largest 500 companies has risen by 14 per cent in the past year, according to new data. The value of audit fees paid by these firms rose from £1.12bn to £1.27bn for the 2021/22 financial year, according to new research by Thomson Reuters. It said [...]
Unlocking what makes AI tick – part one August 4, 2023 Dr Chris Kacher with part one of his epic overview on how artificial intelligence works, and its future within blockchain technology.
London expansion picks up pace for Spanish bank Alantra as series of hires give boost to the City July 31, 2023 Spanish investment bank Alantra has made a series of new hires in the year so far as its push into the London market picks up the pace. So far this year it has brought in Graham Nicoll from Barclays to lead its Midlands team while Sulaiman Bosha has joined from Crito Capital as a managing [...]
UK remains European fintech lead despite major investment slump July 31, 2023 Fintech investment in the UK slumped 57 per cent in the first half of the year as rising rates, high inflation and geopolitical tensions dampened investor sentiment. Total UK fintech investment dropped to $5.9bn (£4.6bn) in the first half of the year, down from $13.8bn in the same period last year, according to data from [...]
UK borrowing falls as debt pile revised to under 100 per cent of economy July 21, 2023 The Government’s debt pile was bigger than the country’s economic output in June – the first time this has happened for more than 60 years, official data shows. Public sector net borrowing hit £18.5 billion last month, down from £20 billion a month earlier, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said. It pushed the total [...]
Bank of England must keep raising rates to finally kill off inflation, City experts say July 20, 2023 The Bank of England should not yet let up on raising interest rates to ensure inflation has finally been defeated. That’s the verdict of City economists despite the Office for National Statistics today revealing the cost of living fell faster than expected to 7.9 per cent in June, down from 8.7 per cent in May. [...]