Schroders backs Wayve and Elevenlabs with UK’s first venture capital fund for pensions April 29, 2026 Autonomous vehicle unicorn Wayve and deeptech darling Elevenlabs are among the fast-growing unicorns that have been backed by the cash raised in a historic funding round by the UK’s first venture capital vehicle set up to cater for pensions. Schroders Capital announced on Wednesday it had injected over £100m into British-based tech and life sciences [...]
Grant Thornton snaps up Australian sister firm as part of global push April 29, 2026 Professional services giant Grant Thornton US is set to acquire the firm’s Australian counterpart to become part of its global advisory platform, boosting the private equity-backed player’s global reach. Grant Thornton US said the transaction was “recommended by the board and would close later this year, subject to shareholder partner approval and standard regulatory conditions.” [...]
Astrazeneca ploughs £300m into UK in surprise U-turn April 29, 2026 British drugs giant Astrazeneca has promised to plough £300m into its UK operations, just months after cancelling a nine-figure investment in a new lab after getting in a spat with the UK government over drug pricing. In a stunning volte-face, the UK’s largest pharmaceutical company said it would revive its £200m investment into a megalab [...]
Labour hands police ‘long-overdue’ violent shoplifting powers April 29, 2026 The government has handed the police a set of “long overdue” powers to crack down on soaring levels of violent shoplifting, which has been branded a “national scandal”. The crime and policing bill was granted royal assent on Wednesday, meaning assault against retail workers is classed as a specific offence, and the effective immunity for [...]
Special relationship: Americans snub champagne in favour of English fizz April 29, 2026 Americans are flocking to English wine and snubbing champagne, the boss of England’s biggest winemaker has said. Kent-based Chapel Down said consumers across the Atlantic are fuelling record demand for English sparkling wine, as the AIM-listed firm bets big on the US market. Chief executive James Pennefather told City AM: “Americans are really embracing Chapel [...]
The AI bubble has a name – and it’s OpenAI April 29, 2026 For three years, Sam Altman has worn the badge of greatest pitchman in the history of tech. He sold the world a vision of artificial general intelligence – a machine that thinks, reasons and creates – and sold investors the bill to build it. The man raised more capital in a single funding round than [...]
Driscoll’s Names Wyard Stomp Chief Operating Officer and Expands Shaily Sanghvi’s Role to Lead Global Strategy April 29, 2026 Leadership announcements advance Driscoll's global ambition to scale its proven mission of delighting consumers to every market worldwide
Blockworks Valued at $192M in Latest Fundraise, Bets on Rolling up Fragmented Data Industry April 29, 2026 Blockworks has raised a Series A extension, co-led by ParaFi and Reciprocal Ventures, with participation from 20+ of our customers and a group of operators we deeply admire.
EA Gibson Shipbrokers and SOGDC Consortium Sign MoUs to Advance Integrated Energy Hub at Sipitang Oil & Gas Industrial Park April 29, 2026 MoUs exchanged with ACWA Power, Aboitiz Power Ltd and WEC to develop an integrated energy hub covering approximately 275 acres at SOGIP, Sabah, Malaysia Multi-phase project to deliver 400 MW of power generation, 65,000 m³/day of freshwater production, and LNG, ammonia and hydrogen storage and distribution infrastructure EA Gibson Shipbrokers leads the consortium on behalf of SOGDC and the state of Sabah, with discussions now underway with qualified terminal and energy storage developers Development projected to attract over USD 3.5 billion in foreign investment and create nearly 5,000 jobs in Sabah
Renters’ rights act: what does it mean for landlords, rent hikes, tenants and no-fault evictions? April 29, 2026 The government’s long-awaited renters’ rights act comes into force on Friday, 1 May. Labour says the new law will “level the playing field” between landlords and tenants, but many in the residential rental sector have been alarmed by the scale of the changes and there are concerns that many independent landlords will exit the market [...]