Lloyd’s of London opens its doors for the first time since March September 2, 2020 Lloyd’s of London has reopened its doors with enhanced safety measures after nearly six months of remote working. Employees returned to the office on Tuesday after months of insurance contract negotiations taking place online and over the phone. In June the insurer, which is one of the last face-to-face financial markets, announced plans to reopen [...]
FTSE 100 slides as pound surges but US stocks continue to rise September 1, 2020 The FTSE 100 slumped as the pound soared, but the relentless rise of the big US tech companies continued on a choppy day’s trading. London’s blue-chip stock index slid 1.8 per cent to stand at 5,859 points in afternoon trading. The FTSE 250 index of mid-cap firms shed one per cent. Read more: Asian markets [...]
Climate protesters target Lloyd’s of London over fossil fuels insurance September 1, 2020 Returning Lloyd’s of London employees have been met with protesters who are demanding the insurer ditch its fossil fuels insurance to protect the climate. Campaign group Insure Our Future launched its campaign outside Lloyd’s of London office this morning as the insurer reopened its underwriting hall. Protesters are criticising Lloyd’s for failing to take “meaningful [...]
London business confidence improves for second consecutive month August 28, 2020 Business confidence in London continued for the second consecutive month as the Eat Out to Help Out scheme provided a boost to the capital’s hospitality industry. The Lloyds Business Barometer, which measures monthly economic trends, found confidence in the capital rose eight points but remains in negative territory, at minus 13 per cent, slightly higher [...]
Top 25 law firm DAC Beachcroft seals £65m deal with HSBC and Lloyds to provide ‘firepower’ during covid downturn August 21, 2020 UK top 25 law firm DAC Beachcroft has sealed a £65m financing deal with Lloyds and HSBC to help give it the “firepower” to push through the covid-downturn. The London-headquartered law firm, which has 19 offices and more than 2,600 people around the world, said it boosted its finance facility to ensure its plans for [...]
Pizza Express closures: A list of all 73 affected restaurants August 19, 2020 Pizza Express is closing 73 restaurants with 1,100 jobs at risk after its business was hit by the coronavirus lockdown. The casual dining chain, which struggled with a debt pile of over £1bn thanks to a series of private equity buyouts, made the cuts as part of a company voluntary arrangement (CVA) with creditors. The [...]
British life insurers paid £90m in coronavirus death claims by the end of May August 13, 2020 British life insurers paid £90m in claims for coronavirus deaths in the three months to the end of May, the Association of British Insurers (ABI) said today. Insurers received 7,000 life insurance claims from families of people who died from covid-19 and 83 per cent have been paid so far, the ABI said. Every life [...]
The return to work: Here’s when City firms are going back to the office August 7, 2020 Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Thursday said a strong recovery for the UK economy will require people to have the confidence to return to work at the office. The government is worried that hospitality businesses are being hit hard by people working from home. But London firms have adopted a more cautious approach than the [...]
People must have the confidence to return to work, says PM August 6, 2020 An economic recovery will require people to have the confidence to get back to the office, the Prime Minister has said in his latest attempt to push the UK to return to work. During a visit to a housing development in Warrington this afternoon, Boris Johnson told reporters there were “real signs of strength in [...]
FTSE 100 breaks 6,000 and US stocks rise amid economic optimism August 3, 2020 The FTSE 100 rose sharply, surpassing 6,000 points, as investors looked past rising coronavirus cases and cheered positive economic data. London’s blue-chip index was 2.2 per cent higher in afternoon trading at 6,028 points. The mid-cap FTSE 250 was up 1.2 per cent. Read more: HSBC profit plummets due to coronavirus pandemic On Wall Street, [...]