‘At least a decade’ to turn Thames Water around, CEO says amid £1.6bn loss July 15, 2025 The boss of Thames Water has said it will take “at least a decade” to turn the company around as it posted a loss of £1.6bn. The loss for the year to end March compares to a small profit of £157m the prior year and comes despite an 8.7 per cent rise in turnover during [...]
Rachel Reeves urges Brits to buy stocks as she shuns risk-averse regulators July 15, 2025 Rachael Reeves has thrown her weight behind a campaign to get more Brits investing into stocks and shares as the Chancellor shunned the risk-averse culture of London’s financial regulators. In a wide-ranging address to City execs at Mansion House last night, Reeves vowed to place financial services “at the heart” of the government’s growth agenda [...]
FCA plots regulatory bonfire to lower costs of raising capital July 15, 2025 The Financial Conduct Authority is to pare back its onerous capital raising rules as part of a regulatory bonfire aimed at helping firms grow faster. Under fresh rules set to take effect in January, the requirement to produce a prospectus for public secondary share raises will be upped from 20 per cent to 75 per [...]
Mansion House speech: Rachel Reeves to ‘rip up’ red tape in financial services July 14, 2025 Rachel Reeves is to pledge a bonfire of financial services regulation as she seeks to rekindle her relationship with the City. The Chancellor will vow to cut “reams of financial red tape” when she gives her annual Mansion House speech on Tuesday evening, according to people familiar with the matter. That is set to include [...]
Andrew Bailey cautions banks against issuing their own stablecoins July 14, 2025 The governor of the Bank of England has cautioned against banks issuing their own stablecoins in marked contrast to a more bullish attitude to the technology in the US. Andrew Bailey said the moves by banks to launch their own stablecoins, a kind of cryptocurrency backed by assets such as the dollar, did not offer [...]
HMRC under pressure as underpaid tax by US firms surges July 14, 2025 The UK’s tax collector is under pressure amid a surge in underpaid tax by US companies. HMRC suspects as much as £8.8bn in tax was underpaid by US companies in the previous tax year, a jump of 57 per cent compared to the previous year, according to figures obtained by accounting firm UHY Hacker Young. [...]
HSBC splashes $5m on new London wealth centre despite non-dom exodus July 12, 2025 HSBC has opened a new wealth centre in the heart of London to cater to high-earning customers in defiance of fears of an exodus of wealthy investors from the UK. Britain’s most valuable bank has leased two floors of a fifteen-storey tower in Piccadilly, formerly the home of British magazine The Economist, in a $5m [...]
Canada Corporation calls for creation of investment hub July 10, 2025 Canada Corporation has called for the creation of an “investment hub” for financial services in a bid to safeguard the Square Mile’s status as a world-leading financial centre. In a report developed in collaboration with the Treasury, the Corporation said the hub would unlock as much as £10bn in capital for growth [...]
Greenergy biodiesel plant do shut down in latest industrial strategy blow July 10, 2025 One of Britain’s biggest biodiesel plants is preparing to shut down in the latest blow to the government’s industrial strategy. The Greenergy plant in Lincolnshire, which is thought to produce as much as a quarter of the UK’s biodiesel, on Thursday confirmed it would begin consultation on a proposal to cease production. Greenergy said its [...]
Ofcom relaxes Royal Mail delivery targets to cut costs July 10, 2025 Royal Mail will be allowed to deliver first and second class letters more slowly after its delivery targets were slashed by the communications watchdog in a bid to cut costs. From the end of July, Britain’s postal service will be allowed to deliver second class letters on alternate weekdays, Monday to Friday, instead of six [...]