The business of running: Trainer sales and fitness apps boom in lockdown June 5, 2020 Running in the UK has been booming for years, with Parkrun events attracting hundreds of thousands each Saturday and amateur athletes comparing their fastest times on new tracking apps. That trend has only accelerated under the coronavirus lockdown, albeit in a more solitary way. As normal life has ground to a halt, huge numbers of [...]
The City View: The Hound of Hounslow and the Flash Crash of 2010 June 5, 2020 In this episode Christian is joined by journalist Liam Vaughan, author of Flash Crash – a gripping account of how Navander Singh Sarao ran a trading system from his bedroom in his parents’ house in West London that contributed to the infamous 2010 flash crash where $1tn dollars was suddenly wiped from the value of global [...]
Face coverings mandatory on TfL network from 15 June June 4, 2020 It will be mandatory for commuters to wear face coverings on all English public transport networks from 15 June, including on Transport for London (TfL). Transport secretary Grant Shapps made the announcement at today’s press briefing, adding that non-compliance would lead to a refusal of travel and fines. Shapps said there would be exemptions for [...]
The City View: ‘Cowardly business chiefs must speak up against the lockdown’ – Luke Johnson June 3, 2020 In this episode Christian is joined by entrepreneur and investor Luke Johnson, a high-profile critic of the government’s lockdown policy. Subscribe to The City View Podcast: Apple / Google / Spotify / RSS Johnson says that many business leaders agree with his position in private, but are too afraid to voice their own concerns publicly. He says the lockdown is “dystopian” – [...]
Office politics: Pandemic sees onshoring trend ramp up June 2, 2020 The Covid-19 pandemic has been devastating for communities, businesses and economies globally. Over the past 16 weeks, as lockdowns were enforced around the world, consumers retreated to their homes and offices and services closed their doors. The lockdown has presented unique challenges to the customer service industry, much of which has been outsourced overseas over [...]
FTSE 100 rises as countries emerge from coronavirus lockdowns June 2, 2020 The FTSE 100 and global stocks have risen for the second day this week as investors cheer the reopening of economies around the world. London’s blue-chip index was up 0.9 per cent in early-afternoon trading at 6,220. It rose 1.4 per cent yesterday after US President Donald Trump stopped short of reigniting his trade war [...]
Crypto markets gearing up for institutional money June 2, 2020 Prime brokers are the key to institutional adoption of cryptocurrencies and digital assets – but are they ready for prime time? Current estimates place the number of crypto hedge funds in the hundreds, and recent research from PwC revealed that assets managed by these funds doubled in the last year alone. With more and more [...]
London Stock Exchange finds broad backing for shorter trading hours June 1, 2020 The London Stock Exchange (LSE) has found strong support for shorter trading hours after a public consultation with the industry. Feedback from the LSE’s public consultation found a “significant majority” of respondents thought a reduction of market hours “could lead to improvements in diversity and wellbeing”. A small number suggested a “lunch break” as an [...]
Why global cities can still thrive despite Covid-19’s impact June 1, 2020 The most connected part of global cities could be of even greater value despite an increase in remote working. The Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated our digital future with remote working set to become the norm for many people. But although fewer people will be travelling into cities each day to work in the knowledge economy, [...]
UK and Italy seek to further ease lockdowns as scientists urge caution June 1, 2020 European countries like the UK and Italy are readying themselves to ease lockdown measures further despite scientists urging caution as coronavirus cases continue to rise. The UK is still seeing a steady rise in coronavirus infections but governments face pressure to restart their economies after Europe’s lockdowns triggered the biggest peacetime downturn on record. The [...]