Fancy driving a Tesla? You can rent one from Heathrow Airport August 17, 2016 Horses were a cool way of getting around. You couldn’t ride one into a tree or over the edge of a cliff, even if you tried. You could fall asleep on them and safely wake up in the stable next to your house. They eat nothing but hay and poop out pure, nutrient-rich horse puddings. [...]
Solvency ratio concerns weigh on Admiral as its share price dives August 17, 2016 Insurance giant Admiral led today's FTSE 100 laggards as it slid eight per cent after revealing a solvency ratio decline within its half-year results announcement that wasn't to everyone's tastes. The figures Group profits were up to £193m from £186m on turnover that jumped nearly 20 per cent from £1.06bn to £1.26bn. UK operations profit before tax increased slightly from [...]
Everyone will benefit from the coming “brain free” car revolution August 16, 2016 Driverless cars are making headlines, with the future of travel revealing itself to be grounded very much in the present. It’s a thrilling time to be in the motor business as trials of new vehicles are gaining momentum. And while it will take time for the technology to be fully rolled out on our roads, completely [...]
This insurer is calling the shots in the war for tech talent August 11, 2016 Finding appropriately skilled staff for technology projects is a problem which plagues many businesses, but one insurance company has told City A.M. it seems to have it sussed. Gary Hoffman, chief executive officer of Hastings Group Holdings, revealed the company was increasingly looking beyond other insurance firms to sniff out the best talent and turning to tech giants, such [...]
Uber just renewed its feud with London’s regulators August 8, 2016 Uber is turning to its customers to help it fight "bureaucratic" new rules imposed by Transport for London, including an English exam "harder than the test for British citizenship", renewing its feud with regulators in the capital. The billion-dollar company said the rules would "threaten the livelihood of thousands of drivers", reducing their numbers and thus increasing the [...]
Before the bell: What you need to know before the US market open August 4, 2016 The Bank of England has cut interest rates and markets are loving it. Here's what you need to know before the US market open at 2:30pm London time. US stock futures are pointing up ahead of the open. The S&P is up by 0.15 per cent, the Nasdaq is up by 0.05 per cent, while [...]
Four of the most jaw-dropping working practices at Sports Direct July 22, 2016 The dire working practices at Sports Direct have come under the spotlight again today as the Business, Innovation and Skills committee released the report outlining its findings on the company – and it wasn't pretty. Founder Mike Ashley has started a review looking at the conditions at Sports Direct's Shirebrook warehouse and in its stores, which [...]
Lessons from bankrupt footballers: They earn megabucks but are likely to squander it all. What can we learn from their mistakes? July 15, 2016 They earn megabucks but few actually make a decent plan for their post-working lives. While we’re not all multi-millionaires, everyone has something to learn from their mistakes, explains RBC’s Jonathan Gold. Modern football is synonymous with wealth, whether through its astronomical wages or lucrative sponsorship deals. But young players are often making a Faustian bargain [...]
Telematics will make you safer and save you money – by disrupting the disrupters July 14, 2016 Telematics – the technology for collecting and analysing driver behaviour – has been transforming the face of car insurance for a long time. Now it is set to play a key role in how people engage with market disrupters such as Uber and Zipcar. These new entrants give people a great deal of flexibility in how [...]
Airbnb your house: Here’s how much Londoners could be making from the sharing economy July 13, 2016 The sharing economy is growing faster in Britain than anywhere else in Europe. As it has become more expensive to own cars, homes and even electrical equipment, more of us are seeing the advantages of monetising our idle assets. PwC estimates that transactions on platforms in the five biggest sharing economy sectors almost doubled in [...]