Wonga job cuts: The evolution of the UK’s top payday lender February 25, 2015 Wonga founder Errol Damelin Damelin establishes Wonga Wonga was founded by current chief executive Errol Damelin in October 2006. With the help of software engineer Jonty Hurwitz and venture secured from Balderton Capital, Damelin launched wonga.com in 2007. By June 2009, the company had reached 100,000 loans. The firm launched its iPhone app in December [...]
Double decker deal for Exponent Private Equity as group snaps up Big Bus Tours February 24, 2015 The former owner of thetrainline, Exponent Private Equity, has added another transport-related firm to its portfolio after snapping up sightseeing company Big Bus Tours. The mid-market buyout manager, which also owns Quorn Foods, and recently floated shares in HSS Hire, will buy the group from shareholders made up of two family backed groups. The Maybury [...]
What is mindfulness? And why does your office need it? February 24, 2015 Use it to replace personal negativity, team in-fighting or the feared office manager approach. In the modern office environment of instant information, immediate reaction, and 24/7 availability, it can be difficult to achieve any kind of mental balance – to deal with tricky situations or to tune out distractions. But there is something that [...]
Boris Johnson’s vision of a jetpack future is already here as Martin Aircraft Company takes off February 22, 2015 Looking to the future of London, Boris Johnson could only dream of a Jetsons-style space-age capital. “It may be that by 2020 we will all have learnt to commute with jetpacks, but until then, we need to invest in our existing transport modes,” he said a few years ago. Now, however, it seems the mayor’s [...]
24 Hour Party People? George Osborne and Boris Johnson confirm plans to turn London into 24-hour city February 20, 2015 London is just months away from taking tentative steps towards becoming a 24-hour capital, and the government is already planning the next phase. Chancellor George Osborne and London mayor Boris Johnson this morning confirmed a wider rollout of the 24 hour service across the Tube and Overground lines from 2017. That will follow [...]
Return to Utopia: The desire to live where you work harks back to the industrial towns of yesteryear February 19, 2015 On frosty, damp mornings like the ones London has seen of late, the morning commute is worse than ever. Biting winds followed by packed, sweltering trains, followed by more wind – it’s as if the commute was specifically designed to make you as ill-prepared as possible for the day ahead. Yet it’s accepted by millions [...]
Five things you should know about the FTSE 100 February 19, 2015 The FTSE 100 is edging closer to an all-time high, nearing the record of 6,930 points it hit on 30 December 1999. But how much do you know about… When it was born?The index began on 3 January 1984, at a base level of 1,000 points, in response to calls for a constantly updated index. [...]
It’s time the City – and the UK – show support for a capital markets union February 18, 2015 Few people have anything good to say about the European economy. The pipes, they say, are clogged up – and even if they can be unblocked, they are rusting away. Brussels is normally seen either as a blockage, or as a hapless plumber who can’t figure out a solution. But work is progressing in Brussels [...]
Transport for London launches “etiquette poetry” competition to get commuters behaving better on the Tube February 17, 2015 The pen is mightier than the sword. That proverb was apparently created by a man who avoided execution by persuading his jailer to kill another prisoner, so he probably knew a thing or two about the strength of the written word. And it's that power that Transport for London is hoping to harness for good [...]
Boris Johnson’s Crossrail for Bikes to link Tottenham, Stoke Newington, Dalston and the City of London February 17, 2015 The next phase of Boris Johnson's "Crossrail for Bikes" will make it easier for Londoners to cycle from Tottenham, Stoke Newington and Dalston into the City of London, Transport for London (TfL) said today. The new cycle superway 1 (CS1), which will run along quiet streets parallel to the A10, could cut cyclists' journey times from Tottenham to [...]