Know your stuff: Five things everyone needs to hear about pensions October 2, 2015 Charges and not taking enough risk can massively dent your long-term savings. Seismic shifts have taken place in the pensions world in recent years – and there may be more to come. Generous employer pension schemes have all but disappeared, and new freedoms brought in by the government this year aim to offer savers [...]
Ladies who don’t lunch: Ingrid talks people power, performance, and rising to the top October 2, 2015 Maike Currie talks to Ingrid Waterfield about taking the road less travelled When I arrive at One Lombard Street, a favourite haunt of City-types just a stone’s throw from the Bank of England, Ingrid Waterfield is already seated and waiting. I am not late but I am slightly flustered. She, on the other hand, [...]
London house prices: The capital’s most exclusive homes are going for bargain prices October 2, 2015 Another day, another sign the top end of London's property market is in the doldrums, after figures by Knight Frank showed house prices in the capital's most exclusive areas grew just 1.3 per cent in September on the same month last year. That's the lowest rate of growth since October 2009 – and in some [...]
City Moves for 02 October 2015 | Who’s switching jobs October 1, 2015 BAKER & MCKENZIE The law firm has appointed Dyann Heward-Mills as a partner to its data protection and privacy practice in London. The qualified barrister joins from GE Capital, where she was global senior privacy counsel. Prior to joining GE Capital, Heward-Mills spent five years at Linklaters as their senior privacy and communications lawyer. She [...]
Responsible investing: Do bonds that make the world a better place fit into your portfolio? October 1, 2015 When the return on traditional bonds is so low, why not invest in ones that make society better? The UK was once home to a thriving social bond market, where investors of all stripes clubbed together to fund socially beneficial projects. The 1960s was the heyday of loaning money to local authorities, and in [...]
Tesco in talks to sell 10 more supermarket development sites to Meyer Bergman October 1, 2015 Tesco is in talks to sell a large chunk of its UK land portfolio, as the supermarket looks to raise funds to bolster its battered balance sheet and pay down debt. The company is understood to be in advanced discussions to sell 10 development sites to European investment giant Meyer Bergman for about £250m. The [...]
City Moves for 1 October 2015 | Who’s switching jobs September 30, 2015 APAM The commercial property asset manager has appointed Simon Hardwick as chairman. Hardwick was formerly at PwC Legal, where he lead its real estate practice. He is also an independent non-executive member of the management board at the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, and has over 35 years’ experience. BARINGS The investment firm has appointed [...]
UK house prices: The property market is mired in uncertainty – brace for higher prices and polarised demand September 30, 2015 It is time for a big think about UK house prices. Does anybody know which way they will turn? Whether we’re looking at the short term or the long term, a tremendous amount of uncertainty abounds. Looking at the short-term outlook, latest figures from the Halifax show prices rising by 9 per cent year-on-year, [...]
Savills: London house prices for the Capital’s most expensive properties have been dented by new stamp duty rules September 30, 2015 London's most expensive properties have been dented by strict new stamp duty rules, new research from upmarket estate agent Savills has shown, with prices in central London falling 4.6 per cent in September, compared with the same month last year. The heart bleeds… The research suggested new rules introduced in last year's Autumn Statement, which [...]
Nationwide: Annual UK house price growth edges up September 30, 2015 Annual UK house price growth rose in September for the first time since May, figures by Nationwide have shown – although the figure was a far cry from the same period this time last year. Prices rose 3.8 per cent in the year to September – up from August's 3.2 per cent, but considerably lower [...]