Mike Ashley tells HMV landlords: Give me six months rent-free January 25, 2019 Retail tycoon Mike Ashley is reportedly demanding a rent holiday from landlords of HMV stores as he negotiates a rescue deal for the music retailer. Ashley has written to HMV’s landlords to see a six-month period without having to pay rent if he buys the chain, according to reports. The landlords include major players in [...]
London startups take the lead in Tech Nation’s fourth Upscale accelerator January 25, 2019 City startups have landed more than two thirds of the places available on Tech Nation’s fourth Upscale acceleration programme, beating out over 100 applicants. The digital entrepreneur network, which also runs a fintech accelerator backed by the Treasury, has selected 30 startups as “ones to watch” in 2019. The fast-growing tech firms will enter the programme’s [...]
Fuller’s calls time on brewing business as Asahi agrees £250m deal January 25, 2019 Fuller has sold its vast beer, cider, soft drinks and distribution business to Japanese producer Asahi for £250m, as the pub operator ends its 174-year role as a brewer. Shares in the pub giant jumped more than 20 per cent on news of the surprise deal, which includes the sale of iconic brand London Pride. [...]
DEBATE: Should London impose rent restrictions, as suggested in Sadiq Khan’s campaign plans? January 25, 2019 Should London impose rent restrictions, as suggested in Sadiq Khan’s campaign plans? Dan Wilson Craw, director of Generation Rent, says YES. Londoners are paying some of the highest rents in the world. Building more homes will plug the shortage at the root of this, but that will take a decade or more. We need urgent action [...]
Jardine Matheson briefly loses $41bn in value following mystery trade January 24, 2019 Hong Kong-British conglomerate Jardine Matheson briefly lost $41bn (£31.5bn) in its share value today with the company blaming an electronic trading error. Jardine Matheson’s Singapore-listed shares traded down 83 per cent before rebounding, in what was originally suspected to be a so-called fat-finger trade. Around 167,500 shares in the company traded at $10.99 versus Wednesday’s [...]
Super-prime time: London surge in high end house sales January 24, 2019 Wealthy buyers have been on a spending spree for multi-million pound trophy houses during the last year, with demand for London’s ‘super prime’ residences bucking a wider slowdown in the capital’s property market. Despite political uncertainty ahead of Britain’s imminent departure from the EU and plans for a new stamp duty on international buyers, activity [...]
Real estate merger to form biggest ever UK healthcare property investor January 24, 2019 Real estate group Primary Health Properties (PHP) has agreed a £1bn merger deal with MedicX in a move that is set to create the UK’s largest ever UK healthcare property investor. In an effort to scale up its role within the healthcare asset market, FTSE 250 primary care specialist PHP has signed an all-share merger with [...]
West End landlord Great Portland reports robust leasing amid growth in tenant demand January 23, 2019 Fresh signs of strength in London’s leasing market emerged today, as listed property giant Great Portland Estates (GPE) posted rising rental values and low vacancy levels amid continued demand for office space in the capital. The West End landlord signed 16 new lettings totalling than 50,000 square feet in the quarter to the end of [...]
Failed tech startup Blippar to relaunch as Nick Candy’s venture firm comes to its rescue January 23, 2019 Property tycoon Nick Candy has bought up the remaining assets of failed technology startup Blippar after it collapsed into administration last month. Already a major shareholder in the business, Candy now owns the intellectual property assets of Blippar and its various brands, which his venture firm said would be deployed into a new business. Blippar's chief [...]
Landsec becomes latest property giant to muscle in on flexible workspace market January 22, 2019 Landsec has become the latest major developer to launch its own flexible workspace brand, joining property rivals hoping to tap into the growing demand for shorter leases and co-working offices. In a bid to rival the likes of commercial property disruptors such as WeWork, the blue-chip firm revealed today its plans to set up a new [...]