Aviva’s profit soars ahead of merger with Direct Line August 14, 2025 Aviva posted a profit jump for the first half of the year after strong growth across its wealth and insurance divisions. The company’s operating profit climbed 22 per cent to just north of £1bn – topping the £875m netted in the first half of 2024. This comes after Aviva completed its £3.7bn takeover of rival [...]
After the shake-up, is the CMA still a watchdog with teeth? August 14, 2025 Those of us who have regulators' email alerts switched on were familiar with the CMA as an active regulator, but that didn't align with the Labour government's agenda.
Another blow to London as Just Group goes to Canadian manager July 31, 2025 The London Stock Exchange lost yet another constituent to foreign ownership on Thursday, after pension insurer Just Group agreed a bumper takeover deal from Canadian asset manager Brookfield Wealth Solutions (BWS). The FTSE 250 firm’s board told markets it had accepted a £2.4bn offer from the North American company in a deal valuing the firm [...]
Mansion House: UK giants to agree to pick high-return pension schemes July 14, 2025 UK giants Tesco and NatWest Group are set to answer the City of London Lord Mayor’s calls to focus on driving returns rather than getting bogged down by fee costs when picking pension schemes for employees. Ahead of the Mansion House speech on Tuesday, the Lord Mayor criticsed UK companies for choosing providers that charged [...]
Bailey: Don’t force pension funds into UK assets July 9, 2025 Andrew Bailey has warned the government against forcing pension funds to invest in UK assets, saying that while reform to the sector was essential, he would prefer to see it done in a “natural” way. Treasury ministers have refused to rule out taking measures to make British pension funds allocate a certain share of their [...]
Aviva’s £3.7bn takeover of Direct Line approved by UK watchdog July 1, 2025 Aviva’s acquisition of smaller insurance peer Direct Line has been approved by the competitions watchdog, paving the way for the formation of Britain’s biggest home and motor insurer. The £3.7bn takeover will not be subject to a phase-two investigation, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said on Tuesday, after a preliminary probe to assess whether [...]
Lord Mayor: The unicorns are galloping away June 30, 2025 As capital dries up and unicorns flee, the UK must act now or accept its fate as an incubator economy, writes Alastair King.
Direct Line bosses out ahead of £3.7bn Aviva deal after bumper bonus revolt June 23, 2025 The chief executive and chief financial officer of Direct Line are to step down when its £3.7bn sale to Aviva is complete, it has been announced. CEO Adam Winslow and CFO Jane Poole will leave their roles when the deal is finalised next month. In a statement, the company said a leadership team for Direct [...]
British and Irish Lions ticket prices teeter on verge of greed June 20, 2025 I love the British and Irish Lions but quite frankly the touring side is teetering on becoming a black hole of greed, pulling fans’ precious pennies and pounds into a vortex of commercial excess. Take Friday’s exhibition match against Argentina at Dublin’s Aviva Stadium. There were a number of single tickets still available just yesterday [...]
Legal & General: FTSE 100 giant touts asset management plans June 18, 2025 Legal & General is set to delve further into the asset management markets after outlining its fresh growth plan on Tuesday. The firm’s asset management arm, which oversees £1.1 trillion in assets, is setting out targets for the coming year to notch over £500m in operating profit. If successful, this would mark a sharp jump [...]