Royal Bank of Scotland reveals plans for new structure to comply with UK ring-fencing requirements September 30, 2016 Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) has set out its plans to restructure in order to comply with UK ring-fencing regulations. Legislation requiring the separation of essential banking services from investment banking services will take effect from 1 January 2019. RBS said today that in order to be compliant with its requirements, "we need to [...]
City of London braced for £2bn business rate hike September 29, 2016 The City of London is bracing itself for a tax hike estimated at more than £2bn when new business rates are revealed tomorrow. Details of new business rates represent the first re-evaluation since 2010. Due to rocketing rents in London over the past six years, businesses in the capital are expecting huge increases for the [...]
Jacksonville Jaguars: London’s unofficial NFL franchise, their plans to put down roots in the capital, and the threat Tottenham Hotspur pose to their British affair September 28, 2016 More than three years have passed since Mohamed Al Fayed, in a fitting coda to his eccentric reign, donned an oversized fake moustache and faced the cameras with Shahid Khan to mark the bewhiskered American sports mogul’s takeover of Fulham Football Club. It marked the second play of Pakistan-born, Florida-based Khan’s incursion into the capital’s [...]
Zara owner Inditex posts sales rise of 11 per cent September 21, 2016 The world's biggest clothing retailer – which owns brands such as Zara, Bershka and Pull & Bear – reported a like-for-like sales rise of 11 per cent this morning. Total sales increased to €10.47bn (£8.99bn) for the period from 1 February to the end of July. Profits jumped eight per cent annually, reaching €1.26bn (£1.08bn). Analysts had [...]
West End gets Brexit boost from overseas shoppers as sales to tip over £9bn for the first time September 21, 2016 Overseas shoppers are flocking to the West End to spend their cash since the fall in the value of the pound – and the Brexit boost is set to tip sales for the district over £9bn this year. Jace Tyrrell, chief executive of the West End lobby group New West End Company, says London's premiere shopping district [...]
Designer exports from the capital set to soar on the back of London Fashion Week September 19, 2016 London's high-end fashion brands are in high demand – and London Fashion Week is expected to boost exports even further. According to the Department of International Trade, the sales of UK designer clothes have grown by 20 per cent in the last decade and are now worth between £2.5bn and £2.9bn. As a whole, the UK [...]
Kingsfisher is looking for a new London headquarters September 19, 2016 Kingfisher is looking for a new London headquarters, it has emerged, which is set to boost the commercial property market after the difficulties facing the sector following the Brexit vote. According to the Telegraph, the retailer behind B&Q and Screwfix is looking for a HQ of 300,000 square feet, and has appointed Cushman & Wakefield to find the [...]
Explore the hidden trails of Bali, where luxury retreats hide among verdant rainforests and spectacular valleys September 16, 2016 A monsoon deluge broke as we approached the emerald rainforests of Ubud, sending a family of chattering monkeys, some holding each other’s tails, scampering for the sanctuary of the sandalwood trees. It was that bewitching hour in the tropics when day turns rapidly into bible-black night, as if a curtain has dropped, and driving through plantations [...]
A shortage of land could kill off London’s e-commerce revolution September 13, 2016 Recent reports that Amazon is set to test drone deliveries in partnership with the UK government is just the latest salvo in the fiercely contested battle between the e-commerce giants that are transforming the way we shop. The move also demonstrates the challenges of a constantly evolving logistics sector. City A.M. readers are at the [...]
The future of London: Is the city edging towards independence? September 12, 2016 It is increasingly easy to characterise London as a “city state”. Its scale, wealth and multi-dimensional differences (as compared to the rest of the country) mean it has more in common with New York or Toronto than with Yorkshire or Scotland. The creation of the office of mayor of London, a glamorous Americanised form of government, makes [...]