Former Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis says that Greek reforms are going to fail July 18, 2015 Former Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis has said that the economic reforms Greece has signed up to are "going to fail" ahead of talks on a third bailout for the cash-strapped country. He told the BBC that the medicine administered to the Greek economy by its so-called "troika" of creditors – the European Union, the European Central [...]
Greek startups step up to the plate – CNBC Comment July 13, 2015 IT IS often said that the best business ideas emerge during times of financial stress. When an economy is struggling and its people are cash-strapped, we’re pushed to think outside the box. A prime example is what happened in the US during the financial crisis. A 2013 study in the Journal of Economics and Management [...]
Scaling up: Overcoming the challenges – Investec Comment July 12, 2015 Business growth takes many forms, but some companies have the capacity to achieve truly remarkable rates of expansion. They are scaling up: increasing revenues at a rate of over 20 per cent annually for more than a couple of years. This phenomenon is not exclusive to fast-growing markets or sectors. It may be that [...]
Where is Yanis Varoufakis as the Greek parliament votes? July 10, 2015 Lawmakers in Greece are preparing to vote in Parliament today, but Varoufakis will not be there due to family reasons. The Greek government had sent a package of reform proposals to its creditors on Thursday in order to unlock new funds and avoid bankruptcy, which parliament will be voting on in order to endorse immediate [...]
The top 10 most popular cars in June July 6, 2015 The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) today announced record performance in car registrations in the UK. The figures showed that new car registrations grew by seven per cent in the first half of 2015, which is the highest six month total on record. Mike Hawes, chief executive of SMMT said: It is still [...]
George Osborne under pressure to tweak bank levy in July Budget July 1, 2015 Self-fulfilling prophecy, wishful thinking, fantasy economics: call it what you will, but the prospect of George Osborne fulfilling the desires of Britain’s banks in next week’s Budget is, to say the least, remote. Misplaced expectations that the chancellor would announce a review – or even the abolition – of the bank levy in his [...]
Applegreen IPO: Irish owners net €20m in petrol station listing June 16, 2015 Two Irish entrepreneurs are in line for a €20m (£14.37m) windfall after floating their petrol forecourt business on the London stock exchange. Bob Etchingham and Joe Barrett, who founded Irish petrol station group Applegreen 23 years ago, will net €15m and €5m respectively from the listing, according to regulatory documents filed yesterday. Both [...]
Car manufacturer Renault offers RCI Banque bank account for UK savers June 8, 2015 Car manufacturer Renault’s finance arm is launching savings accounts in the UK for the first time, diversifying its funding base. Motor companies often run finance businesses to fund customers’ purchases of their cars, as well as related insurance products. But offering a wider range of services is not as common. RCI Banque, as the unit [...]
Derby Day Letter: A warm welcome to race-goers from London’s business paper June 5, 2015 Welcome to race day. Today’s special Saturday print edition celebrates one of the greatest and most exciting sporting events of the year. I’m delighted to continue our wonderful relationship with Epsom Downs and Investec again at this year’s event. Here at City A.M., we are truly passionate about the Investec Derby as well as horse-racing [...]
Confident Brits set for new car purchase record June 4, 2015 NEW CAR sales are being tipped by analysts to break their all time annual record this year after they increased for the 39th consecutive month in May. Brits registered 198,706 new cars last month, according to data from the Society for Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). The figure is up 2.4 per cent on the [...]