Mergers won’t necessarily make the system stronger says German banking chief September 1, 2016 The head of the Federal agency that supervises the German financial sector has warned that consolidation among banks would not necessarily strengthen the banking system. President of BaFin, Felix Hufeld said that "consolidation cannot be a goal in itself” when addressing a banking conference today. The news comes the day after local media reported that Germany’s two largest lenders, Deutsche [...]
Why the “outmoded” licence fee should be dropped – for the sake of customers and the BBC September 1, 2016 The BBC licence fee should be abolished for the good of customers and the corporation itself, a new report out today argues. The Centre for Policy Studies (CPS) paper said the government had missed an opportunity for serious reform in its charter review earlier this year. The report, authored by Martin Le Jeune, argues for [...]
Commerzbank and Deutsche Bank merger rumour shot down but German lenders’ share prices still up August 31, 2016 Shares in two big names in German banking are currently riding high on rumours of a merger, even though they have since been denied. Reports from local media that Commerzbank and Deutsche Bank could be heading towards a tie-up were shot down this morning, after the latter's chief executive John Cryan told a conference he didn't see his [...]
Virgin Media to offer faster broadband for gamers August 31, 2016 Virgin Media is taking a niche approach to growing its broadband subscription base. From tomorrow the internet service provider will offer customers the UK’s first broadband tier designed specifically for online gamers. The extra upload speed – up to 20Mbps – will be an add-on to Virgin Media’s current top broadband package and cost £5 per month. Gamers are increasingly choosing to [...]
City Moves for 31 August 2016 | Who’s switching jobs August 31, 2016 Game Digital Game Digital has appointed Guy Lister as chief operating officer. The newly created role, reporting directly to Game Digital CEO, Martyn Gibbs, will see Guy lead all areas of Game Digital’s UK retail operations, including stores and eCommerce, supply chain, marketing and finance functions. Guy joins from Office Shoes where he was chief customer and marketing officer. [...]
Iconic Art Deco cinema in east London to be knocked down and turned into a Lidl August 30, 2016 One of the few Art Deco cinemas remaining in London is set to be knocked down and replaced by a Lidl. The Towers Cinema on Hornchurch High Street, which is 80 years old, will be bulldozed despite local residents opposing the plans. Hundreds of residents signed a petition calling for councillors in Havering to protect the [...]
An art rather than a science: one way to value the assets, four ways to value the liabilities August 29, 2016 Many of us like big numbers. But when it comes to pensions deficits, big numbers are not a good thing. Britain’s pension deficit values vary from day-to-day and from calculation to calculation. The numbers cited range from hundreds of billions to trillions of pounds. The reason they differ is because there numerous ways of calculating [...]
Mark Zuckerberg insists Facebook is not a media company August 29, 2016 Facebook is a technology company, not a media company, despite a move towards live video, working closely with traditional publishers and a recent furore over trending topics on the platform. Speaking at a live question and answer session in Italy, Mark Zuckerberg said Facebook is providing the tools for people to be able to share information but is not itself [...]
The boardroom and the slave: These are the actions firms need to take August 26, 2016 This autumn, executive boards should expect to see slavery and trafficking as compulsory board agenda items, with the introduction of Section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act. The statement Large UK companies are required to publish an annual statement, signed by a director, detailing actions taken to eradicate modern slavery within its organisation and its [...]
Three at 3: The three stories you need to read right now August 26, 2016 It’s Friday afternoon – so why bother trawling the internet for something to read? We’ve done the legwork for you, and put together the top three stories of the day in bite size form, just to make your life that bit easier. Check out our three at three. Night Tube addition Its official – another [...]