FTSE 100 close: JD Sports springs London flagship index to 2018 high January 11, 2023 London’s FTSE 100 index leapt to its highest level since 2018 in afternoon exchanges in the City today after a series of strong retailer earnings signalled the UK consumer is holding up well amid the cost of living crunch. The FTSE 100 index climbed 0.99 per cent to 7,770 points, while the domestically-focused mid-cap FTSE [...]
Lloyd’s of London syndicate Beazley launches world’s first ‘cyber catastrophe bond’ January 9, 2023 Lloyd’s syndicate Beazley has launched the world’s first ‘cyber catastrophe bond’. The insurer’s catastrophe bond protects Beazley’s balance sheet in the event it is forced to pay out more than $300m (£246m) in insurance on any cyber risk policy. Catastrophe bonds have traditionally been used to protect insurers from natural disaster risks, through deals that [...]
Comparethemarket owner backs London ‘insurtech’ Superscript in £45m funding round January 9, 2023 London-based insurance fintech Superscript announced it had bagged a £45m funding round led by the owner of Comparethemarket.com today, in a boost to the UK’s burgeoning ‘insurtech’ sector after a flurry of investment in the past two years.
Cricket champions Surrey swap Adidas for Andy Murray-backed City boys’ startup January 5, 2023 Surrey County Cricket Club have become the latest team to sign a deal with Castore, the Andy Murray-backed British sportswear startup founded by two former City workers. The reigning men’s County Champions today announced a multi-year agreement for their men’s and women’s teams to swap Adidas kit for apparel made by Castore, starting in the [...]
Awards 2023 January 4, 2023 The City is back, and so are the City A.M. Awards, recognising the best of the Square Mile, Canary Wharf and London’s business community – which has shown shown resilience, innovation and adaptability like never before over the past year. We’re delighted to host what will be a wonderful celebration of the capital’s rebound, but [...]
Five tech funding rounds that bucked the gloom this year December 23, 2022 At first glance, you’d be forgiven for thinking it had been another fairly rosy year for tech firms raising cash in the Capital. London’s start-ups bagged £16bn throughout the year; the capital now boasts more high growth firms and ‘unicorns’ than many European countries; and the UK’s tech industry on the whole sailed past a [...]
Hopes of Christmas spending splurge nudges UK business confidence higher December 21, 2022 UK businesses are hoping the Christmas spending splurge will give them a welcome boost before a long recession sets in, a new survey out today shows. According to Lloyds Bank’s business barometer index, every UK region notched a positive business confidence reading for the first time since July. Eight out of the 11 areas recorded [...]
FTSE 100 nudges higher after BoJ tightening boosts UK banks December 20, 2022 London’s FTSE 100 nudged higher today after banks were boosted by yet more signals from the global central banking community that policy will keep tightening next year. The capital’s premier index added 0.13 per cent to close at 7,370.62 points, while the domestically-focused mid-cap FTSE 250 index, which is more aligned with the health of [...]
Relief for mortgage prisoners: Six banks to begin lending on flats with unsafe cladding December 20, 2022 A handful of the country’s biggest banks will consider mortgage applications for some flats with dangerous cladding from January, in a sigh of relief for people trapped in unsellable properties. Lenders withdrew mortgage provisions for unsafe flats following the Grenfell Tower disaster, when 72 people were killed in a fire at a high-rise block in [...]
Best of 2022: How Games Workshop founder Ian Livingstone created a £3bn giant December 19, 2022 In a leafy enclave of West London, Ian Livingstone is balanced precariously upon a chair in his study, grasping for a top-shelf box filled with incredibly rare figurines. The legs of the chair creak in protest, and there is a moment when I fear I may be responsible for the untimely death of the man [...]