Lex Greensill banned as company director for nine years after multi-billion-pound collapse June 4, 2026 The UK Insolvency Service has confirmed that financier Lex Greensill will face a nine-year ban from serving as a company director, after he signed a legally binding disqualification undertaking to resolve long-running enforcement proceedings just days before a scheduled High Court trial. The Insolvency Service, which opened its probe into him in 2022, filed a [...]
King Charles’ cleaner ups dividend after revenue surge June 4, 2026 The official cleaner for King Charles III has upped its dividend as the facilities management business said it was able to get its customer base to dig deeper into their wallets. FTSE 250 member Mitie, which was recently awarded a Royal Warrant by appointment by Charles for services to the Royal Household, is to issue [...]
‘Don’t feel great’: Treasury minister irked by Darren Jones and Mandelson texts June 4, 2026 Treasury minister Lucy Rigby has appeared to criticise her fellow Cabinet colleague Darren Jones over texts he reportedly sent to Lord Peter Mandelson on the day he was sacked as ambassador to the US. Rigby, who currently holds Jones’ former role as chief secretary to the Treasury, told Sky News that she was unsettled by [...]
Sovereignty has replaced ownership as the real currency of power in football June 4, 2026 The Morning Wire Football Power List illustrates the shifting sands of the sport ahead of the 2026 World Cup, writes one of its judges, Amar Singh. We are days away from a truly super-sized Fifa World Cup – 48 teams, three host nations, and a tournament that will be watched by more people than any [...]
Martin Sorrell calls WPP ‘catatonic’ as Goldman slaps sell rating on its own client June 4, 2026 Sir Martin Sorrell spent 33 years turning WPP from a small Kent-based wire and plastics manufacturer into the world’s largest ad company. He left in 2018 following a dispute over personal conduct that he has consistently denied, and has been a vocal critic of his successors ever since. “I think they are further gone than [...]
Partners Group suffers surge in withdrawal requests and braces to cap more funds June 4, 2026 Partners Group warned that its flagship private equity fund had been hit by a flurry of requests from wealthy investors, raising concerns the Swiss firm would have to cap withdrawals, a day after doing so on a major European fund. Redemption requests at its $16bn private equity master fund reached roughly six per cent of [...]
Kirkland & Ellis partners with Palantir for AI-driven private equity work June 4, 2026 The world’s largest law firm by revenue, Kirkland & Ellis, has agreed to partner with tech giant Palantir to create an AI tool to use in advising private equity firms. The US-based firm, which has a large City office, said the multi-year partnership will deploy technology to share the expertise of its leading partners with [...]
Bunq: Revolut rival eyeing up UK banking licence bid June 4, 2026 Europe’s second largest digital bank is gearing up for a bid for a UK banking licence, Morning Wire can reveal, as the firm puts its hat in the ring in the fight to claw market share from fintech leader Revolut. Bunq – which reached 20 million users in just a decade – is understood to [...]
‘Dire’: Rapid decline in construction as sector slashes jobs June 4, 2026 A rapid decline in construction companies’ activity has forced bosses to cut employment, according to new data. S&P Global’s construction purchasing managers’ index (PMI) showed that business activity declined at the fastest pace for six years. Putting the pandemic aside, the decline in construction output was the lowest since March 2009. The PMI reading was [...]
S4 Capital cuts jobs as Sorrell predicts ‘fewer people’ in advertising June 4, 2026 S4 Capital has cut a further 150 jobs this year, amid warnings from Sir Martin Sorrell that AI will leave the advertising industry employing “fewer people” in the years ahead. The London-listed marketing group said its workforce has fallen to around 6,200, down from roughly 7,000 a year ago, as clients continue to rein in [...]