The ASA’s puritanical ban spree is a flagrant assault on free speech August 16, 2019 When the Committees of Advertising Practice (CAP) first announced that it would ban “gender stereotypes that are likely to cause harm, or serious or widespread offence” in December 2017, I noted that crackdowns on adverts are often veiled attacks on free speech. The ads that the CAP and the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) were flagging [...]
Why you should be worried about the rise of the Bank of Mum and Dad August 16, 2019 The yearning to own one’s home is as British as a piping hot cup of tea, cricket, or a traditional roast dinner, and the UK’s rates of ownership-occupancy have traditionally been among the highest in Europe. Unlike many traditions, this desire hasn’t been dented by the complexities of modern life either. One recent survey revealed [...]
Challenger bank Monzo launches loans August 15, 2019 Challenger bank Monzo rolled out a range of new loans today, as the digital bank ramps up its efforts to compete with its larger rivals on the high street. The app-based group will charge interest rates starting at 3.7 per cent for loans higher than £7,500, climbing to a maximum of 24 per cent for [...]
Octopus buys wealth management fintech Seccl for £10m August 15, 2019 Financial services and energy firm Octopus has agreed to purchase Seccl, a wealth management technology startup, as it seeks to move into the investment platform technology market. Octopus will pay £10m for Seccl, a Bath-based firm that helps businesses build investment platforms using flexible software designed to reduce the administrative and cost burden of the [...]
You don’t have to be pale and male to have a career in money August 15, 2019 Today, hearts will be pounding, as young people across the country receive their much anticipated A-level results. Many will be taking up university places, but others will be looking to take their first steps into full-time work. Traineeships can offer school leavers the opportunity to gain paid experience that can lead them, debt-free, into full-time [...]
The big business invasion of the co-working world is bad news for entrepreneurs August 15, 2019 In recent years, the co-working market has exploded. It has become such big business that WeWork, one of the earlier entrants to the space, is now valued at $47bn and is preparing for an initial public offering. The total number of sites and seats available is estimated to have roughly doubled each year since 2005. [...]
Just Eat backer leads $11m raise for City fintech August 15, 2019 Prolific tech investor Index Ventures has led an $11m (£9.2m) series A round for London fintech firm Flatfair. Other participating investors included Onefinestay founder Greg Marsh, former Savills boss Jeremy Helsby, Transferwise co-founder Taavet Hinrikus, Revolt Ventures and Adevinta. Index has previously backed the likes of Facebook, Skype and Just Eat, among others. Flatfair allows [...]
Beware picking an investment – or a football team – for its glory days August 14, 2019 | City Talk Football being what it is, Liverpool’s triumphant Champions League campaign – with that extraordinary semi-final comeback against Barcelona to the fore – was never going to have every single club fan in the country up on their feet and cheering. Nevertheless, the weeks from the team’s victory over Spurs in June to the start of [...]
Government proposals to fix the NHS pension crisis still miss the mark August 14, 2019 It has been an unfortunate theme over recent years that public services have to reach crisis point before the government is stirred to take action. And here we have the mother of all crises (that is, the NHS crisis) made worse by a desperately confusing pensions system. When a tax rule is effectively stopping doctors [...]
Earth to all leaders: You’re doing meetings totally wrong August 14, 2019 Last month, on World UFO Day, conspiracy theorists around the globe gathered to raise awareness of their belief that extraterrestrial life has long been trying to meet with our species – and that such a meeting may have already happened, covered up and redacted by secretive governmental agencies. This got me thinking about a different [...]
