Banking and insurance to drive financial M&As after 2025 frenzy January 7, 2026 Deals in the financial services sector are expected to be “robust” in the year to come, following a burst of activity from the banking and insurance sector in 2025. UK banks, insurers and asset managers publicly disclosed 337 deals last year. Whilst this dipped down from the record high of 378 in 2024, the value [...]
Auction Tech fends off 11 takeover bids from largest shareholder January 5, 2026 Digital marketplace Auction Technology Group has fended off 11 hostile takeover bids from its largest shareholder. The London-listed tech firm said on Monday it had dismissed the latest offer from investment giant FitzWalter Capital, which valued ATG at 360p per share. ATG said the bid – which was received on 23 December – “fundamentally undervalued” [...]
‘Chance of 2026 recession’ despite interest rate cut – follow live December 18, 2025 Welcome back to the City PM liveblog. The Bank of England has handed Chancellor Rachel Reeves and the Labour government a highly-desired Christmas present today. The central bank confirmed a chop to interest rates falling to 3.75 per cent – the lowest in nearly three years. It comes after inflation undershot expectations on Wednesday providing [...]
Global recruiter SThree hit by ailing UK jobs market December 16, 2025 Global recruiter SThree has felt the pinch of the deteriorating UK jobs market with the region becoming the group’s worst performing large market. The consultancy – which specialises in connecting workers in science, tech engineering and mathematics with companies in need of staff – recorded a 26 per cent slump in fees in the UK [...]
UBS chief strategist: Market is not in a ‘bubble’, but US debt poses the real risk December 9, 2025 Despite narrow market leadership that mirrors the crashes of the 1970s and 1990s, the equity market is not currently in a ‘bubble,’ according to UBS Investment Bank Chief Strategist Bhanu Baweja. Speaking at Abu Dhabi Finance Week, Baweja addressed investor concerns that just nine companies in the Russell 3000 have driven 72 per cent of [...]
Revolut and LSEG join growing list of OpenAI customers December 3, 2025 Fintech juggernaut Revolut has joined a host of banking giants in leveraging OpenAI tech to beef up their financial crime protections. The digital bank is one of the latest to partner with the ChatGPT maker as it seeks to enhance its fincrime agent and customer services. The $75bn fintech is also using OpenAI’s large language [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Entain, Flutter sound alarm in Reeves’ tax raid aftermath November 27, 2025 Good morning and welcome back to the City PM liveblog. The dust has settled on the Labour government’s second Autumn Budget and Brits have been left reeling from a £26bn tax raid. Taxes collected as a share of GDP are set to jump to an all-time high in the coming years, according to the Office [...]
FTSE 100 Live: Miners sink blue-chip index; CMA crackdown November 18, 2025 Good morning and welcome back to the City PM liveblog. We’re another day closer to the all-important Autumn Budget and the mood started on a sour note once more on Monday. The FTSE 100 struggled to slip out of the red ending the day on a loss of 0.24 per cent to 9,675.43p. Meanwhile, the [...]
AI bubble fears: Which of the Magnificent Seven will pop? November 17, 2025 The spectacle of the so-called Magnificent Seven – Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Tesla, Meta, Microsoft, and Nvidia – has been the defining market story of this generation. Synonymous with the AI boom, their collective valuation, now commanding a fifth of global markets, is underpinned by the fervent belief that they alone will win the AI arms [...]
Shawbrook’s private equity owner eyes another £3bn IPO November 12, 2025 The private equity owner of specialist lender Shawbrook is eyeing another blockbuster listing for one of its portfolio companies, fresh reports have suggested. Pollen Street Capital is understood to be laying the groundwork for an IPO for its UK insurer Markerstudy with conversations underway with investment bankers over a listing that could value the firm [...]
