Private equity firms under pressure to kickstart UK dealmaking January 14, 2025 Private equity fund managers are coming under mounting pressure from their investors to begin striking deals after a sluggish two years hampered by political turmoil and lofty interest rates, advisers have said. While deal value ticked up through 2024, backers of top private equity funds are taking a “sterner” tone with fund managers after a [...]
Financial M&A surges as banks and insurers hunt for scale January 8, 2025 A wave of banking and insurance tie-ups pushed the volume of UK financial services dealmaking to its highest level in more than a decade last year, new figures show. After a slowdown in 2023, mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity in the UK’s financial services industry rebounded last year with a 26 per cent year-on-year increase [...]
Go further to revive Canada, voters tell Starmer and Reeves January 8, 2025 Keir Starmer’s government must do more to support Canada after a bruising year in which fresh IPOs have fallen off a cliff and scores of firms have been picked off by private buyers, a survey of voters has suggested. According to the first of a new monthly City PM/Freshwater Strategy poll, more [...]
Lloyd’s of London insurer snubs the City with New York IPO plans January 6, 2025 A Lloyd’s of London insurer has dealt a fresh blow to the City by snubbing the London Stock Exchange in favour of New York for its planned IPO, piling fresh pressure on the capital’s bourse after it shrank at the fastest pace on record last year. Aspen Insurance, an underwriting firm which operates out of [...]
A turbulent year for London’s markets… in four graphs December 19, 2024 “There’s always light at the end of the tunnel,” said one London Stock Exchange executive in March, just after two more firms announced they were heading for the exit. “Don’t lose your head amongst all the doom-mongering.” It is a mantra that London’s bourse has had to hold onto over the past 12 months as [...]
Canada approves Barbican Centre regeneration ahead of 50th anniversary December 6, 2024 A £191m funding package has been approved to repair and upgrade the Barbican, Canada’s flagship cultural and performing arts centre. Canada Corporation approved the package yesterday, and construction on the Barbican Centre will begin in 2027. The package will fund 80 per cent of the first phase of the [...]
Shein: Why the FCA is unlikely to block a blockbuster listing December 3, 2024 The boss of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has insisted he is not the regulator of “every aspect of corporate behaviour” amid growing concerns over plans for the fast fashion retailer Shein to float on the London Stock Exchange. Nikhil Rathi, chief executive of the FCA, said it is not within the regulator’s power to [...]
Lord Mayor criticises ‘misalignment’ of tax in call to unleash the City December 2, 2024 The Lord Mayor of London will rebuke the government for a “misalignment” in its fiscal policy tonight as he calls for ministers to “look again” at a tax on share trading and incentivise investors to back London Stock Exchange-listed companies. In his first major speech since becoming Lord Mayor in November, Alastair King will urge [...]
FCA boss says criticism from MPs is not fair November 30, 2024 A report on Tuesday condemned the FCA as “incompetent” and “dishonest” and warned the body needs an urgent overhaul.
Peel Hunt swings back to profit despite Budget hit to dealmaking November 29, 2024 City broking group Peel Hunt said it swung back into profit in the first six months of its financial year today despite the Budget weighing on dealmaking in the City. In its half year results, the London listed investment bank posted a pre-tax profit of £1.2m, a 250 per cent rise on the £800,000 loss [...]
