Exclusive: City fund managers on the winners and losers from the Brexit deal January 12, 2021 The Christmas Eve announcement of a UK-EU trade deal promised an end to four and a half years of uncertainty and speculation. Whilst there are areas of the relationship still to be finalised, it has brought some much-needed clarity to many UK businesses, even though uncertainty for the financial services space and the City remains. [...]
Exclusive: It takes a bot to catch a bot, says advertising chief January 12, 2021 Alongside its early challenges and uncertainty around digital ad spend, 2020 has been a big year for digital advertising as the pandemic forced businesses and consumers moved online. City A.M. spoke with Mayfair-based Nick Morley, EMEA Managing Director at online ad verification giant Integral Ad Science, which analyses the value of digital advertising placements. UK [...]
Smart politicians will be looking to cities as a springboard for greatness January 12, 2021 For much of the second half of the 20th century, powerful city politics was dying. As the great industrial centres went into decline, so too did their once-proud corporations and mayors. County boroughs like Liverpool, Manchester, Birmingham and Leeds were gathered together in 1972 and melded into metropolitan counties like “Merseyside” or “West Midlands”, and [...]
Before the Bell: Tech firms under pressure as Europe poised for modest rebound January 12, 2021 Equities sold off yesterday as last week’s bullish mood was swapped for a more cautious attitude. There was an absence of positive news yesterday so the stories about the health crisis were at the centre of attention, David Madden, market analyst at CMC Markets UK, tells City A.M. this morning. The Chinese authorises announced the [...]
Ahead of COP26, what’s on industry leaders’ climate change wishlists this year? January 12, 2021 At the moment, it’s hard to think beyond the next six weeks, but 2021 is set to be a huge year for climate action around the world. Front and centre is November’s COP26 conference, which will see the world’s leaders descend on Glasgow for the latest round of the United Nations’ ongoing climate change negotiations. [...]
Government’s communications failures can be remedied – if they’re fixed soon January 12, 2021 The Prime Minister’s lockdown announcement last week has left a collective sense of déjà vu and a frustration at seemingly being back to square one ten months into the pandemic. Whilst we are facing an evolved virus, a key component to our fight against the virus has not changed: human behaviour. Rallying behind an approach [...]
Rishi Sunak warns UK economy will ‘get worse before it gets better’ January 11, 2021 The UK’s economy is set to “get worse before it gets better”, Rishi Sunak has today warned. The chancellor told MPs this afternoon that the country’s latest lockdown has scuppered any economic recovery from last year and that the new restrictions will “have a significant impact on the economy”. The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) [...]
Crowdsourcing ideas only works if you do it right January 11, 2021 You’re the boss who knows change is necessary to keep your customers and colleagues on board – and even more so after a few rocky months. Like many in the same situation, you’re thinking: “My employees are a rich source for spotting problems, I’ll ask them what they’d change.” In theory, the approach has mass [...]
The Bribery Act: Ten years on January 11, 2021 This year marks ten years since the Bribery Act came into force. It was enacted in 2010 but was not active until the following year. In May 2019 a House of Lords Select Committee of which I was a member scrutinised the Bribery Act and concluded that overall it was working well. The immediate reaction from businessmen at the outset when the Bribery Bill was [...]
Chancellor Rishi Sunak: The City could be set for a post-Brexit Big Bang 2.0 January 11, 2021 Rishi Sunak believes the Square Mile is set for a post-Brexit “Big Bang 2.0” and that the City’s “culture and creativity” will see it to greater, global heights. In a candid interview with City A.M., the Chancellor also pushed back against criticism of the UK’s trade deal with the European Union, saying that it should [...]