Halifax is set to sharply cut rates on some of its fixed mortgage deals, potentially easing pressure on some homeowners. The UK’s biggest mortgage lender will reduce rates by up to 0.71 percentage points from Friday, with a five-year fixed deal priced at 5.39% from 6.10%. Other lenders such as HSBC, Nationwide and TSB have…
Multi-billionaire Elon Musk is putting Twitter building signs and other items from the company up for auction just weeks after the firm’s rebranding as X. Among the 584 lots on offer are coffee tables, outsized bird cages, and oil paintings of images that went viral. Also listed are tens of desks and chairs, a DJ…
Shares in WeWork, the global office space-sharing company, have plunged after it raised “substantial doubt” about its future. The company’s shares fell by close to 24% in extended trading in New York. The firm said that it needed to raise additional capital to keep it afloat over the next 12 months. WeWork, which is backed…
Over the past years, influencers have become one of the top choices for social media marketers, providing brands an opportunity to reach millions of potential users practically overnight. The rising popularity of influencers has boosted the total spending in this market to record highs. According to data presented by OnlyAccounts.io, brands have spent a whopping…
Zoom, the online meetings platform that became synonymous with home working during the pandemic, has told staff to come into the office more often. Workers who live within a “commutable distance” of the company’s offices, including in the UK, will be expected to make the journey on designated team days. The California-based firm had been…
Cytomos, an Edinburgh-based life science company that has developed a proprietary new approach to analysing cells, has secured £4 million to scale up market-testing of its technology platform Cytomos Dielectric Spectroscopy (CDS). The investment round was led by existing investors Archangels with participation from Old College Capital, Scottish Enterprise and new investor British Business Bank. Cytomos has…
Sadiq Khan has expanded the grant scheme for London’s ultra-low emission zone (Ulez) to cover any household with a heavily polluting car or motorbike, spending an extra £50m after intense pressure over the political fallout of the plan. The revised proposals, announced on Thursday, also notably increase the scrappage payments available for non-compliant vans owned…
The retail landscape in the UK is facing another blow as budget retailer Wilko teeters on the brink of collapse with over 400 stores and approximately 12,000 jobs at stake. The company has filed a notice of intention to appoint administrators due to mounting cash pressures and the inability to secure a rescue deal. This…
Ethical investing has gained significant traction in recent years as investors increasingly seek to align their financial goals with their personal values. However, a recent snapshot of fund-buying behavior reveals a concerning trend – British investors are pulling money from funds badged as sustainable or ethical at an unprecedented rate as ESG (Environmental, Social, and…
Etsy has said it is “substantially decreasing” the amount of sellers’ funds held in reserve globally after UK vendors began boycotting the online craft marketplace over a hold-up in payments. Sellers have been putting their Etsy shops in “holiday mode” and switching to rivals including Folksy, Shopify and Facebook Marketplace after the US-based website began…
Google’s AI training programme has been labelled a “vote of confidence” in ambitions to make the UK the “Home of AI”, according to Michelle Donelan, head of the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology. Donelan praised the tech giant’s new AI training programme to equip its staff with AI skills, streamed via video at Google’s…
Business confidence remains rocky among start-ups and SMEs ahead of the Bank of England’s projected 14th straight interest rate rise, according to a survey from the Institute of Directors (IoD). The bout of rising interest rates and higher prices has led to business confidence remaining at minus 30 points, a one-point rise from June’s measure…
The duty paid on drinks on tap in pubs will be up to 11p lower than at the supermarket. The changes are designed to help pubs compete on a level playing field with supermarkets, so they can continue to thrive at the heart of communities across the UK. The Brexit Pubs Guarantee announced in the…
By now, you’ve likely heard of ‘quiet quitting’, when employees commit to doing the bare minimum that their job description demands. The term gained traction in March 2022 after an employment influencer, Brian Creely, used it on social media to describe ‘coasting’ at work – and the phenomenon has only grown in strength thanks to…
New data from the Institute of Directors shows the drop in business confidence that was picked up in June has been sustained into July. The monthly IoD Directors’ Economic Confidence Index, which is the most-timely indicator of UK business sentiment, fell from -6 in May to -31 in June, suggesting a significant deterioration in the…
