London fashion retailer Farfetch raises over £75m in funding round May 4, 2016 Online fashion retailer Farfetch has raised $110m (£75.6m) in its latest funding round to augment expansion plans in the Asia-Pacific region. The London-based luxury shopping platform plans to use the funding to expand in China, Farfetch’s second largest market, Japan and other Asia-Pacific countries. China represents 12 per cent of the company’s sales with Asia-Pacific collectively representing [...]
Standard Life snaps up Axa’s Elevate May 4, 2016 Standard Life has today agreed to buy Elevate, Axa's wrap platform aimed at investors. The move will see Standard Life gain over 150,000 customers and £9.8bn worth of assets under administration. Standard Life will be purchasing the platform through subsidiary Standard Life Savings, using cash to acquire the entire share capital of Elevate, which is the trading name for Axa Portfolio [...]
Signs of life in London’s flotation market as firms consider IPO options May 3, 2016 There are signs of life in London's flotation market after a slow start to the year. Furniture retailer The Range and store card maker NewDay are both considering initial public offerings (IPOs), which could value each company at more than £1bn. Today, audio visual and document solutions distributor Midwich announced it had raised £75m through a [...]
Is Aim about to get a new Joules in its crown? Fashion retail unveils plans for £140m IPO May 3, 2016 Joules has announced plans to bring its colourful wellies and country-style clothes to London's junior market with a £140m listing. The fashion and lifestyle retailer said the initial public offering will take place in the second quarter of the year, with its founder Tom Joule expected to sell down his 80 per cent stake to less than 50 [...]
Conviviality to soak up wine wholesaler Bibendum May 3, 2016 Alcohol group Conviviality is to buy wine distributor and wholesaler Bibendum in a deal that worth £60m, which will be part-funded through a share issue. The Aim-listed business is looking to raise £32m through issuing shares at 205p each, with a further £10m being drawn from its banking facilities. Bibendum, which supplies wine, beer and spirits to around 4,000 restaurants, pubs [...]
Zac Goldsmith seems to have found his mojo: But is it too late to defeat Sadiq Khan? May 3, 2016 City Social, on the 24th floor of Tower 42, is used to hosting London’s power brokers, and it would take an interesting guest to tempt the diners to look up from their menus or their phones. Nobody reaches for their cameras when I take a window seat with Zac Goldsmith, but they definitely notice him. [...]
One more survey that shows the living wage and Brexit fears are hitting hiring May 3, 2016 Brexit fears and the introduction of the national living wage are holding down pay and stopping firms from taking on staff, the latest jobs report from Adzuna suggests. The online recruiters said that advertised salaries for vacancies in the UK stood at £33,815 in March — down two per cent on last year — while [...]
Post room boom: Workplaces are being overrun by packages delivered to employees, research by Barclaycard shows May 3, 2016 Offices are being overrun by packages delivered to employees, according to new research from Barclaycard. Company post rooms are likely to suffer from a deluge of mail this week as 17.1m British shoppers anticipate spending more than usual online over the Bank Holiday weekend. Over half, 58 per cent, of Londoners now regularly use their work address [...]
Bond bad-boy Mads Mikkelsen boozes with brokers at XTB, but are execs worried the loose-tongued actor will give away trade secrets? May 2, 2016 It's well known that London's finance workers have a thing for James Bond. And so it was for fintech trader XTB, which celebrated signing Le Chiffre actor Mads Mikkelsen as its brand ambassador with a star-studded party in the West End last week. Is the fintech firm worried that their new signing will give away trade secrets? Before [...]
Euro 2016 and Rio Olympics set to pump at least £3bn back into UK economy May 1, 2016 Britain can expect a significant financial boost from a summer of sport featuring the Olympics and Euro 2016 according to economists’ estimates. Food, drink, retail and betting businesses are all expected to benefit from a surge in consumer spending this summer as the public cheers on Team GB in Rio de Janeiro and the England, [...]