City Moves for 09 February 2015 | Who’s switching jobs February 8, 2015 Cohn & Wolfe The communications agency has appointed Helen Ridgway as chief executive of technology agency AxiCom, which it acquired seven years ago. Cohn & Wolfe, in turn, is part of WPP. Ridgway co-founded AxiCom 20 years ago. Her client base includes Tyco and Microsoft Devices Group. Insight Investment Shankar Athreya has been appointed head [...]
Landlords should not be the scapegoats for uninventive politicians February 8, 2015 If you’re a landlord, you could be forgiven for feeling like the ills of the world are being laid at your door. The Tories held landlords responsible for stemming illegal immigration, making passport and identity checks a legal requirement before any tenancy agreement can be signed. Labour enlisted them in the fight against climate change [...]
Property firm Grainger achieves sales growth despite electioneering building February 5, 2015 PROPERTY management firm Grainger said despite the good start to the year, the company expects the months leading up to the election to result in a softer market on home sales as uncertainty weighs on market sentiment. The company saw sales in the four months to the end of January increase by four per cent [...]
Best of the Brokers for 06 February 2015 February 5, 2015 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com AVANTI COMMUNICATIONS Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated its “buy” rating on the telecoms firm after it reported results for the second quarter of 2015 that were in line with market expectations. The broker stated that the outlook points to “significant revenue growth” in the third [...]
How London is leading the charge on a radical employee rent scheme February 5, 2015 Two years ago, Vodafone became one of the first big businesses to issue a warning over Britain’s housing costs. It said that the sheer cost of renting was making it harder for firms to attract talent. Within weeks, its concerns were echoed by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and KPMG’s London Business Survey. London’s [...]
A weekend of gourmet indulgence with Heston Blumenthal on the Mont Blanc slopes February 5, 2015 You know a Heston Blumenthal meal is going to be something special. The same, it turns out, goes for a Heston Blumenthal holiday. The concept is a foodie’s wet dream: four days of crisp slopes, fine Italian wine and haute cuisine cooked by some of the world’s top chefs. Here’s how it came about: “Heston [...]
Former Liberal Democrat media boss Mark Littlewood slams Nick Clegg’s plan for higher taxes February 5, 2015 The former chief spin doctor for the Lib Dems has condemned the party's plans for massive tax hikes after the General Election. The Lib Dems set out their fiscal offer to the nation today pledging an additional £8bn of tax rises to help balance the books by 2017-18. Party leader Nick Clegg added they would [...]
Bank of England fears a public backlash on mortgage controls February 3, 2015 The Bank of England must educate the public on its new powers over mortgage lending or risk harm to its reputation, top official Donald Kohn told MPs yesterday. Officials can limit loan to income ratios and debt to income ratios if they fear the housing market is becoming a risk to financial stability. But that [...]
Aberdeen Asset Management share price hit by dip in emerging market appetite February 3, 2015 Volatility and a decline in investor sentiment for emerging market assets ensured Aberdeen Asset Management saw a decline in its portfolio during the three months ending 31 December. The quarterly results were particularly impacted by market conditions during December, which offset the positive inflows in equities seen during the preceding two months. A declining [...]
Jones Lang LaSalle builds a record profit February 3, 2015 Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL), the New York-listed property services giant, revealed yesterday that net profits jumped by a third last year thanks to strong fee revenue growth across all markets. JLL, which has been acting as leasing agents for the developers of the Cheesegrater skyscraper in the City and the Shard, runs 230 offices in [...]