Stephenson Harwood raises newly qualified lawyer salaries to £90,000 November 4, 2021 Stephenson Harwood have raised salaries for newly qualified solicitors by 20 per cent to £90,000, as City law firms fight to attract and retain legal talent in an increasingly competitive market. While newly qualified lawyers enjoy a jump up from £75,000, staff across different levels will receive bumpers, ranging from 8-17 per cent, to their [...]
Crypto blindspot risks ‘crumbling’ British legal system place on international stage November 3, 2021 Britain’s legal system could lose both business and its international standing because of failures to keep up with laws for new markets like crypto-currency and artificial intelligence, according to a new report. English law underpins financial contracts and transactions worth trillions around the world, according to the report by think-tank Social Market Foundation. But the [...]
Investors warn Big Four of AGM rebellions over climate accounting November 2, 2021 An investor group managing around $4.5tn worth of assets have issued a warning to the top four auditing giants to start including climate risk into their audits, or risk rebellions at AGMs, according to reports. In a letter seen by Reuters, which first reported the news, the investors told the Big Four auditors that unless [...]
Grant Thornton and partner fined over £750,000 over Interserve audit failings November 1, 2021 Grant Thornton has been fined over £700,00 by UK regulator Financial Reporting Council (FRC) for audit failings at Interserve, a British multinational construction business which collapsed in 2019. The fine comes just over a month after the FRC issued another sanction, of £2.3m, on the accounting giant for a “serious lack of competence” in the [...]
Patel’s Policing bill could undermine trust and ‘exacerbate violence’, insiders warn October 25, 2021 Parts of a controversial Police Bill could undermine trust in forces and “exacerbate” serious violence, a number of former police chiefs have warned this morning. The group of ex-police leaders, senior officers and advisers has written to Home Secretary Priti Patel to express their concerns about some of the proposals contained in the Police, Crime, [...]
UK investors cheer third quarter dividend windfall October 25, 2021 As supply chain, labour and inflation storm clouds gathered on the horizon, City investors toasted an overflowing dividend pot and the end of this summer – boosted by the FTSE’s mining, oil and banking companies. Total UK dividends soared to £34.9bn in the three months to 30 September, up by nearly 90 per cent on [...]
Government turning to more CCTV and street lighting to reduce crime October 24, 2021 Chancellor Rishi Sunak is expected to pledge millions for better CCTV and improved street lighting and give £80m in additional funding to the Crown Prosecution Service. It is part of a £435m package of measures aimed at preventing crime and will form part of next week’s Budget, with a focus on violent offences against women. [...]
Senior KPMG partner responds to Sadiq Khan’s COP26 call for London to get more powers October 22, 2021 Anna Purchas, a senior Partner at KPMG in London, wrote to Morning Wire today as she responded to our article ‘Sadiq Khan will use the upcoming COP26 to vouch for cities like London to have greater powers and funding.’ Dear Morning Wire, I read with interest that our London mayor Sadiq Khan will use the upcoming [...]
Not just NatWest: Compliance guru on why money laundering is rampant in the City October 21, 2021 Over the past few decades, money laundering has become an increasingly prevalent issue. Financial institutions are constantly looking for new ways to fight money launderers, and several anti-money laundering policies have been put in place to help this effort. However, the recent case against NatWest sent shockwaves through the City, with many financial institutions realising that the financial watchdog, [...]