Business confidence slumps ahead of Spring Statement March 2, 2026 Business confidence slumped back in February as directors’ frustration with the state of the UK economy grew, new research has shown. The Institute of Directors’ latest business confidence survey has uncovered bosses’ exasperation with the UK economy and the level of employment taxes preventing them from taking on more workers. The IoD said its economic [...]
Blair think tank turns fire on Labour over wage hikes and tax squeeze March 1, 2026 Tony Blair’s think tank has published a critique of Labour’s economic strategy, warning that higher minimum wages, rising employers’ National Insurance and tougher workers’ rights risk choking off growth and pricing young people out of jobs. In a striking intervention from the former Labour prime minister’s own policy institute, the report deems the government’s labour [...]
Labour accused of ignoring rental housing February 27, 2026 Chancellor Rachel Reeves has been warned she must “take sharp notice” of the collapse of John Lewis’ housing venture by investing immediately in the build-to-rent sector. The Association for Rental Living (ARL), the body which represents the build-to-rent sector, has sent an open letter to senior Labour figures calling on the government to develop a [...]
Pearson boss shrugs off investor AI fears after share jitters February 27, 2026 The boss of Pearson has shrugged off shareholder concerns that the company’s services could be usurped by the rising use of AI chatbots. Earlier in the year the education giant was one of a number of London-listed data and software-led stocks, including the likes of Sage and Relx, that suffered steep selloffs amid investor anxieties [...]
‘Quiet revolution’ – Rathbones shares rise along with CEO’s ambition February 27, 2026 FTSE 250 company Rathbones saw its share price soar in early morning trading as it announced it was aspiring to become the “best wealth manager in the UK by far”. Shares rose 9.05 per cent to 2,410 pence, gaining 24.6 per cent this year to date. Profit before tax jumped 53.5 per cent to £152.9m, [...]
Janus Henderson Confirms Receipt of Unsolicited, Non-Binding Proposal February 26, 2026 No Shareholder Action Required at the Time
Investec awards East London coffee enterprise Well Grounded £60k grant February 26, 2026 Financial giant Investec has awarded £60,000 to social enterprise Well Grounded, which plans to create 10,000 career opportunities in the coffee sector in the coming decade. Well Grounded, based in East London, runs speciality coffee training programmes for jobseekers and has placed over 1,000 Brits into the industry so far. Unemployment rose to its highest rate in [...]
White Oak Commercial Finance Provides $35 Million ABL Facility to Unicat Catalyst Technologies February 26, 2026 White Oak Commercial Finance (“WOCF”) and White Oak UK (“WOUK”), affiliates of White Oak Global Advisors, today announced they provided a $35 million Asset-Based Lending (ABL) Revolver Facility to Unicat Catalyst Technologies LLC (“Unicat” or “the Company”), a leading supplier of heterogeneous catalyst products. The facility also includes a $20 million uncommitted accordion feature. Headquartered [...]
Telekom Srbija Group Secures Landmark International Credit Ratings from Fitch and Moody’s, Marking Historic First for Western Balkans February 26, 2026 First Western Balkans–headquartered company to secure dual global credit ratings, shining a spotlight on the region’s rising growth and international relevance
Ocado boss: We were naive to accept orders but US firms should have worked harder February 26, 2026 After its share price tumbled on Thursday morning, the boss of Ocado was given the chance to evade the blame for shuttered warehouses and job cuts. The retail tech group’s financial results set out easing losses and slowly climbing revenue. But it was the plans to cut 1,000 jobs – mostly at the company’s Hertfordshire [...]