One in five mergers canned as volatility spooks dealmakers December 29, 2022 Nearly 20 per cent of all mergers and acquisitions were canned this year as dealmakers took fright at the extreme turbulence shaking global markets, new data has revealed. One in five deals were abandoned in 2022 while some 26 per cent were put on ice as private equity firms and corporate dealmakers opted to sit [...]
Sacked: Football clubs change chiefs at four times the rate of top UK firms December 29, 2022 Football clubs have proved they are a more ruthless group than Britain’s biggest firms this year as top clubs sacked their bosses at four times the rate of FTSE-100 firms.
Govt accused of ‘rank double standards’ as civil servants paid £30m in vouchers December 29, 2022 The Government has been accused of “rank double standards” after giving almost £30 million in high-street vouchers to civil servants amid a pay freeze prompted by the cost-of-living crisis. Sixteen Whitehall departments in 2021-22 paid out a combined total of £29.57 million to staff in the form of ‘reward and recognition’ vouchers, a third more [...]
Boxing Day footfall bounce for retail as West End chief calls for recovery help December 27, 2022 Retail destinations across the country reaped the rewards of a Christmas without Covid restrictions as Boxing Day sales enticed shoppers out of their houses. However, business leaders noted footfall was still below 2019 levels and called on the government to help accelerate retail’s recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic as it grapples with an economic downturn. [...]
Sign of the times: Bank branches shut doors in their thousands December 24, 2022 More than 5,000 bank and building society branches have closed over the past seven years, according to analysis from Which? The consumer group counted 5,162 bank and building society branches which have closed since January 2015. A further 206 branches are set to close by the end of 2023, according to the Which? findings, as [...]
Square Foot Mile: Corporate office space deals surged by 25 per cent in 2022 December 23, 2022 Big corporate deals for London HQs has caused office leasing volumes to surge by almost 25 per cent. The post-pandemic return to the office is in full swing, with central London take-up rising by 24 per cent this year. Of the increase, demand for high-quality space in the capital has skyrocketed with 60 per cent [...]
Narrow Escape: Sam Bankman-Fried released on $250m bail December 23, 2022 Disgraced FTX co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried avoided prison on Thursday after posting a $250m recognised bond before awaiting trial for charges of fraud and money laundering. The US attorney’s office for the Southern District of New York has charged Bankman-Fried with eight criminal counts, including fraud and money-laundering offences. The previously heralded crypto hero reportedly used [...]
London flexible office occupancy rates recover to pre-pandemic levels December 22, 2022 Flexible office spaces in central London have seen their occupancy rates recover to pre-pandemic levels, new data shows. A majority (86 per cent) of the world’s top 30 flexible workspace providers have seen now seen occupancy rates in their central London offices surpass levels of 60 per cent, a survey by Knight Frank shows. A [...]
Wagamama owner The Restaurant Group agrees £340m debt terms with lender December 22, 2022 The Restaurant Group has announced an amendment and extension of its debt facilities, with a revised £340m package. On Thursday, the owner of the Wagamama and Frankie & Benny’s brands said the new deal comprised of a £220m term loan facility and a £120m revolving credit facility with its existing lenders. The new terms represented [...]
Rishi Sunak hires Evercore investment banker as new ethics adviser December 22, 2022 Rishi Sunak has hired a new independent ethics adviser, after the last two holders of the post quit during Boris Johnson’s premiership. The Prime Minister has appointed Sir Magnus Laurie CBE, a senior investment banker at Evercore and chair of Historic England, as Number 10’s new independent adviser on ministers’ interests. Sunak said in a [...]