The Bank of England has held interest rates at 4 per cent, pausing its cycle of monetary easing as governor Andrew Bailey warned that Britain was “not out of the woods yet” on inflation. The decision, taken by the Bank’s nine-member Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), saw seven members vote to leave rates unchanged while two backed a quarter-point cut. The ...
Women entrepreneurs are achieving 25 per cent lower valuations than their male peers when exiting their businesses, according to new research unveiled by Evelyn Partners at its No Diversity, No Deal event in Glasgow. The preliminary findings, drawn from Evelyn Partners’ upcoming Next Exit report, reveal that male business owners secured an average of £5.2 million at exit compared to ...
The former Director General of the Institute of Directors has been disqualified as a company director for 11 years after abusing the government’s Covid Bounce Back Loan scheme. Anna Daroy, 61, of Abbots Morton, Worcestershire, secured two maximum-value £50,000 loans for her management consultancy, Globepoint Associates Ltd, in May 2020 — despite businesses only being entitled to one. The loans, ...
The rejection of proposed amendments to the government’s Employment Rights Bill risks creating unnecessary barriers to growth and worsening conditions in the UK labour market, according to the Association of Professional Staffing Companies (APSCo UK). Samantha Hurley, Managing Director at APSCo UK, described the decision as “disappointing” and said recruitment experts and business leaders had been ignored despite raising concerns ...
Octopus Energy Group has announced it will spin off Kraken, its fast-growing AI-powered technology arm, in a move designed to accelerate its expansion into global energy markets. Kraken, launched within Octopus in 2019, has become one of the most advanced operating systems for utilities worldwide. The platform is now contracted to manage more than 70 million household and business accounts ...
Classic literature is enjoying a new surge in demand – not for its words, but for the soaring value of rare first editions. Pawnbrokers across the UK say they are seeing a dramatic rise in people cashing in on their bookshelves, with mint-condition copies of Harry Potter, Enid Blyton and even Fyodor Dostoevsky works becoming hot commodities. James Constantinou, owner ...
If 2024 was the year when artificial intelligence dominated the headlines, then 2025 has been the year of the cyberattack. From luxury fashion houses to high-street retailers and car manufacturers, businesses across the UK and beyond have found themselves under siege from hackers. The scale, frequency and audacity of these attacks raise urgent questions about how well user data is ...
Cyber criminals have stolen the personal details of potentially millions of Gucci, Balenciaga and Alexander McQueen customers in a ransomware attack on their parent company, Kering. The luxury group confirmed that in April hackers gained “temporary access” to its systems and accessed customer records, though it insists no financial information such as card or bank details was stolen. The compromised ...
Tesla shares have surged almost 50% since the company was rocked by a very public clash between CEO Elon Musk and US President Donald Trump in June. On June 5, 2025, the feud sent Tesla stock tumbling 14% in a single session, wiping $150 billion off its market value. The sell-off drove shares to an intraday low of $284.70 amid ...
Ocado has begun using zero-emission refrigeration units across its flagship double-deck trailer fleet as part of efforts to cut emissions and reduce costs. The online grocer confirmed that Sunswap’s Endurance units — powered by batteries and solar panels — are now fitted to its double-deck trailers, keeping fresh and frozen produce chilled without using diesel. Each Endurance unit eliminates diesel ...