Eyeing property crowdfunding? The nuts and bolts of the new sector’s leading platforms June 17, 2015 In the space of half an hour, 126 people clubbed together to buy a house via a property crowdfunding platform last month. The £212,900 two-bed flat in Byfleet, a half-hour train journey from Waterloo, was listed on platform Property Partner. Founded this year, it counts Betfair co-founder Ed Wray as one of its backers [...]
Applied Graphene share price rises as Japan Patent Office approves production June 17, 2015 British company Applied Graphene has won approval for graphene production from the Japanese Patent Office. It is the first time the firm, which was founded in 2010, has been granted approval following an application, and sheds a positive light on the prospect of winning consent from the other five countries it has approached. [...]
UK house prices: Tony Pidgley’s Berkeley calls for Britain to stay in the EU as housebuilder’s profits rise 42 per cent June 17, 2015 London-centred residential property developer Berkeley Group announced a 42 per cent increase in full-year profits today, but warned a British exit from the EU would be bad for the capital's property market. Read more: How can the UK build more houses? In preliminary results for the year to the end of April, Berkeley stressed that the [...]
City Moves for 17 June 2015 | Who’s switching jobs June 16, 2015 CRUX Asset Management The fund manager has appointed Karen Zachary as chief operating officer. She has 20 years’ experience in asset management, and has held positions at Henderson Global Investors, Man Group, Fidelity International and New Star Asset Management. EY Chris Gould has been appointed partner and head of the professional services firm’s cybercrime team [...]
London house prices: Growth in the capital slows to lowest rate since 2012 June 16, 2015 UK house price growth slowed to 5.5 per cent in the year to May, according to data published today by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). London’s market was particularly subdued, falling to 4.3 per cent – the capital's lowest figure since October 2012. Read more: Average property price in Kensington and Chelsea rises by £486,000 [...]
London Technology Week: Tech City is an awesome success story combining the best of Silicon Valley, Wall Street, New York and DC June 16, 2015 I emigrated from Silicon Valley a little more than ten years ago to work at a very young startup at the time, Skype. It was so new then that I spent months correcting friends’ pronunciation of the company name from Skype-ee to Skype. At that time I was exasperated at the dearth of candidates for [...]
Warren Buffett splurges $500m on Australian insurer IAG June 16, 2015 Warren Buffett, the legendary investor and second-richest man in the world, is clearly interested in protecting his fortune, after he spent AU$500m (£248m) on the Insurance Australia Group (IAG). Under the deal, Buffett will end up with a 3.7 per cent stake in the company, while IAG will have options to place another five per [...]
Unite fund buys student digs for £271m June 15, 2015 UNITE’S UK Student Accommodation Fund (USAF) said yesterday that it has snapped up a 2,100-bed portfolio for £271m in its first deal since its £306m fundraising last month. The portfolio, which was acquired from Ahli United Bank, includes eight sites located across seven prime student accommodation markets including London, Glasgow, Leeds and Birmingham. FTSE 250 [...]
City Moves for 16 June 2015 | Who’s switching jobs June 15, 2015 State Street Global Advisors The investment management arm of State Street has appointed Elliot Hentov as head of policy and research for its official institutions group. He joins from Standard & Poor’s, where he was a director in its sovereign ratings team. Hentov has also previously held roles at the UN. BNY Mellon Alan Flanagan [...]
Mansion tax mania: Average property price in Kensington and Chelsea rises by £486,000 in one month June 15, 2015 The average asking price for a home in Kensington and Chelsea rose 28.4 per cent (almost £500,000) between May and June, according to data from Rightmove. The figure hints at a glut of high-end properties entering the market after the election, now sellers can forget their fears over the mansion tax. Read more: As rents [...]