Wall Street opens flat as big banks kick off earnings season April 14, 2021 U.S. stock indexes opened flat today as Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan kicked off the first-quarter corporate earnings season, against the backdrop of a swift vaccine-led global economic recovery The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 8.32 points, or 0.02 per cent, at the open to 33,668.95. The S&P 500 opened lower by 0.01 points, or -0.00 [...]
City Moves: Who is switching jobs in the Square Mile this week? April 14, 2021 Snakes and Ladders provides a roundup of the most important hires and job moves across the City, every Wednesday afternoon. Email citymoves@cityam.com to be featured. John Lewis hires ex-Experian lead John Lewis has appointed a new director of financial services in London this week, who will step into the new role on 14 June. Amir Goshtai, who joins [...]
Judge to decide if PwC US lawfully sacked whistleblower April 14, 2021 Following a nine-day trial, a judge will decide if PwC US broke the law by firing a senior manager for blowing the whistle on the Big Four firm’s allegedly cosy relationship with two tech companies it audited. Former PwC senior manager Mauro Botta accused audit giant of firing him because he submitted complaints to the [...]
EU property giants make €1.6bn move for London’s Globalworth April 14, 2021 Czech CPI Property Group and German real estate company Aroundtown SA have confirmed a €1.57bn cash offer for London-listed Globalworth Real Estate Investments this morning. The offer will go through CPI-owned Zakiono, giving the Cyprus-incorporated company 2.8m shares – which represents around 1.28 per cent of the company. CPI and Aroundtown currently hold 113.8m Globalworth [...]
Audioboom books first profit as podcast downloads grow April 14, 2021 Podcast platform Audioboom has booked its first ever profit for the first quarter after cashing in on continued growth in on-demand audio. The Aim-listed firm posted adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation of $30,000 (£22,000) in the first three months of the year, up from a $500,000 loss the previous year. The maiden [...]
Will ESG turn Bitcoin into a digital ‘stranded asset’ or monetary MySpace? (Part II) April 13, 2021 In this second instalment of a two-part piece, Ben Ashby, Derek Usher and Gerard Fox explain why environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors will undermine Bitcoin’s eye-catching rise, here focusing on the ‘S’ and ‘G’. We at Good Governance Capital (GGC) are enormously enthusiastic and supportive of innovation and competition in finance. As former mainstream [...]
Airbus rolls out boardroom shake-up as technology and defence chiefs quit April 12, 2021 Airbus this evening unveiled its biggest boardroom shake-up for two years as its technology and defence chiefs announced their departure. Dirk Hoke, head of the company’s defence and space division, and chief technology officer Grazia Vittadini will both step down on 1 July, the company said in a statement. Both are understood to be leaving [...]
Buzzfeed UK revenue falls as pandemic hits digital advertising April 12, 2021 Buzzfeed UK’s revenue dropped last year as the online media group battled the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the online advertising market. The website’s UK division, which also covers its international operations outside the US, posted a 16 per cent decline in revenue to £18.9m in 2020. However, Buzzfeed said an aggressive cost-cutting strategy [...]
Post Office draws up plan to share profits with postmasters April 12, 2021 The Post Office is said to be considering plans that would enable postmasters to receive a share of the group’s profits. In a speech to senior executives last week, boss Nick Read said he wants ministers to approve a restructuring of the network that would create a “partnership of equals” by 2025. The plans would [...]
Suspect charged with murder of London hotelier Sir Richard Sutton to appear in court today April 12, 2021 A man will appear in court today, charged with murdering millionaire Sir Richard Sutton, who owned a string of top hotels in London. Yesterday, Thomas Schreiber, 34, was charged with murder, attempted murder and dangerous driving. Schreiber is due to appear before Poole Magistrates’ Court today. Schreiber was arrested on suspicion of murder in Hammersmith [...]