London’s Capita sells government joint venture Axelos for £380m June 21, 2021 London-headquartered outsourcing firm Capita has sold its UK government joint venture Axelos for £380m, as Capita looks on track for growth for the first time in six years. Shares rocketed 6.03 per cent in this morning trading, taking its share price to 39.91p per share. The joint venture, set up by the firm with the [...]
Garden furniture prices spike ahead of another summer of garden-crawling June 21, 2021 With Covid-19 hammering hospitality spaces, garden furniture has soared in popularity in the last year, while the UK braces for another summer of garden-crawling instead of the typical pub routes. While there are still restrictions on visiting pubs and homes, many will be opting for garden gatherings over pub crawls this summer, much like the [...]
ICO chief warns of the data protection dangers in live facial recognition tech June 18, 2021 The UK’s data protection watchdog has warned of the risks in the use of live facial recognition in public places today, because of its “supercharged CCTV” capabilities. The Information Commissioner’s Office information commissioner Elizabeth Denham explained in a blog post published today of her worries over the increasingly common technology. “I am deeply concerned about [...]
European Commission to probe Google’s €123bn digital advertising business June 18, 2021 Google has entered hot advertising waters again as EU antitrust regulators are set to open another probe against the tech giant, according to reports. European Commission investigators will look into digital advertising practices at Google, owned by parent company Alphabet. The move is likely to come before the end of the year, which could threaten [...]
Tesco bags over £10bn in sales as customers still favour home cooking June 18, 2021 Supermarket giant Tesco has taken in over £10bn in UK sales over the last quarter, with customers still in the habit of home cooking over restaurant dining as restrictions gradually lift. The UK, the chain’s main market, brought in a slight 0.5 per cent lift to sales in the 13 weeks to 29 May, in [...]
Pandemic pushes Brits to spend £33bn on smart tech, but only a third say it has made life easier June 18, 2021 After UK households dished out an eyewatering £33bn on smart devices in the last year, only a third of Brits say it has made life easier, according to research from Uswitch. While the pandemic pushed people’s social lives to the digital sphere, comparison service Uswitch found a quarter of UK adults now have four or [...]
Euros tied with summer sun sees booze sales soar across the UK June 18, 2021 Alcohol sales in the UK have skyrocketed during the Euros, as sunny weather spurred fans to splash the cash on booze, according to data from PayPoint. Sales data from PayPoint’s network of 28,000 retailers found that over the weekend the Three Lions played their first fixture against Croatia, alcohol sales climbed 11 per cent in [...]
UK wealth management fund True Potential eyes $2bn US Spac float June 18, 2021 UK wealth management fund True Potential is eyeing a potential $2bn Spac listing in the US, according to reports, snubbing the London Stock Exchange for Wall Street. Credit Suisse’s US bankers have tabled plans to merge the management fund with a special purpose acquisition company, the Evening Standard first reported. Working with nearly 20 per [...]
Bank of America: All vaccinated staff will return to office in September June 17, 2021 Bank of America (BoA) has confirmed today that its doors will open to all of its vaccinated employees in early September, as over 70,000 staff have voluntarily disclosed their vaccine status. The US bank will welcome its unvaccinated employees at a later date, after developing plans for a safe return to offices, its CEO Brian [...]
Sterling dips back under US $1.40 for the first time in a month June 17, 2021 Sterling has dipped back under $1.40 for the first time in a month, likely swayed by a hawkish US Federal Reserve last night. The Federal Reserve suggested it may taper its stimulus earlier than expected last night, which knocked the commodity price index off a 16-month high. The Fed also signalled it will raise rates [...]