Fintech firms grew four times faster than traditional banks in 2025 June 1, 2026 The explosive growth of the global fintech sector continued in the last year, drastically outpacing its incumbent rivals but faced a challenge in cementing its market share. Fintech firms’ average growth rate was four times faster than that of traditional financial services at an average of 22 per cent in BCG’s Global Fintech Report 2026. [...]
House prices will fall by two per cent this year – the most since the financial crisis June 1, 2026 House prices will fall by two per cent for the first time since the financial crisis this year, according to Savills, which warned mortgage hikes as a result of the Iran war had “fundamentally changed the outlook for the housing market”. The property giant was forced to revise down its property price forecast for 2026 [...]
UK music tech faces scale-up crunch as growth funding collapses June 1, 2026 Britain’s music tech sector is facing a scaling crisis, with funding for growth-stage firms collapsing by 90 per cent over the last five years despite the rapid rise of AI and growing investor interest in music licensing infrastructure. A new report from industry body Music Technology UK (MTUK) found investment into growth-stage music tech companies [...]
BCG, Bain and Alvarez & Marsal to ramp up entry level hiring despite AI fears May 31, 2026 Three of the UK’s largest management consultancies are boosting the amount of young people and graduates they recruit this year amid sector-wide concern that AI will disrupt junior hiring. Both Bain & Co and Alvarez & Marsal’s UK bosses said they will be stepping up the amount of junior hires over the next few years [...]
NATO military chief presses UK to accelerate defence pledges May 31, 2026 Nato’s military chief has urged Britain and other allies to speed up the delivery of their defence pledges. Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, Nato’s military committee chair, said he is “frustrated” by the UK and its allies’ commitments to spend on defence which he said do not stand if there is no equipment to show for [...]
Ministers back SNP probe as Sturgeon refuses to apologise for Murrell May 31, 2026 Two top government ministers have backed an inquiry into the SNP after its former chief executive Peter Murrell admitted to embezzling over £400,000 from the party. Shadow home secretary Chris Philp told the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg that there “should definitely be an inquiry because trust in politics has been fundamentally undermined by the [...]
Key Mandelson file withheld by Cabinet May 31, 2026 The Cabinet Office will not release a key document linking to Peter Mandelson’s vetting following police warnings that it could derail the ongoing investigation into the disgraced peer. Government officials will not release the summary document, complied by the UK Security Vetting Agency (UKSV), following advice from Scotland Yard that it could jeopordise prosecuting Mandelson [...]
Streeting suggests North Sea drilling and NI cuts in latest pitch May 31, 2026 Former health secretary Wes Streeting has suggested cutting national insurance and issuing new North Sea oil drilling licenses as he continues to make his leadership pitch. In an interview with the Sunday Times, Streeting set out a series of policies ahead of a potential leadership contest expected within the coming months in Westminster, including drilling [...]
Manchester City and Spygate prove lawyer gulf is opening in football May 31, 2026 In February 2023, Manchester City fans unfurled a banner at the Etihad Stadium bearing the words “Pannick on the streets of London”. This play on The Smiths’ 1986 song referred to Lord David Pannick KC, the barrister hired to spearhead the club’s defence against 115 charges for alleged breaches of the Premier League’s financial rules. [...]
‘Defining moment’: UK’s largest train operator enters public ownership May 31, 2026 Ministers have hailed the nationalisation of the of the largest train franchise as a ‘defining moment’ as the government pushes forward with nationalising the railway. Transport secretary Heidi Alexander hailed the nationalisation of Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR), with its services accounting for one in six train journeys in the UK. Its four brands, Southern, Thameslink, [...]