Survival of the fittest: Why clever collaboration with other parts of the market will change the game for platforms and investors June 9, 2016 Demand in the crowdfunding sector has grown on a huge scale in recent years. Total transaction volumes increased by 85 times between 2012 and 2015, from £3.9m to £332m, according to Nesta. But the industry still has a long way to go. How platforms have developed in recent years, in line with increasing demand and [...]
Why growing businesses should have a lead investor when crowdfunding June 9, 2016 As the alternative finance market matures, I am seeing more and more businesses that have raised capital through crowdfunding platforms struggling to fill their funding requirements in follow-on rounds. In the main, these are businesses that are starting to see market traction and are looking to raise capital to help them to scale up. So why [...]
How should you choose your investing partner? June 9, 2016 As every entrepreneur knows, the key to building a successful business is building a great team. And just as important as building a management team is attracting the right “team” of investors. You can and will change management along the way. You probably won’t change investors. Most growth stage companies have multiple investors, joining at [...]
At the close: FTSE 100 makes it four positive days on the bounce as commodity prices climb June 8, 2016 A rebound in commodity prices gave a boost to the resources and energy heavy FTSE 100 today, moving it ahead of European markets. The index rose by 16.99 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 6,285.21 points, making today its fourth positive session on the bounce. Oil prices continued their recent rally, climbing to their highest price in around eight months. [...]
Ready, set, go: Pension scheme investors need to be ready to react quickly in run up to EU referendum June 8, 2016 Pension scheme trustees should pour their coffee is extra strong over the next few weeks, as research out today has found they'll need to be quick to react in the run up to the EU referendum. Investment consultants LCP warned that, thanks to the level of uncertainty caused by the upcoming vote, pension trustees will have to [...]
Before the bell: What you need to know before the US market open June 8, 2016 Mixed data out of China is giving economists and experts hope the country is headed for a soft landing, while Hillary Clinton has given her first speech as the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee. Here's what you need to know before the US open at 14:30 London time. US stock futures are looking up ahead of the open. The [...]
Recently listed CMC Markets lures in the traders to boost its profits; as chief executive Cruddas waves away Brexit “scare mongering” June 8, 2016 Recently listed CMC Markets proved it was quite a catch for traders in its results for its year ended in March, with trading activity significantly increasing. The figures The derivatives dealer revealed that its profit before tax had grown to £53.4m, up 23 per cent on the prior year's £43.5m. Meanwhile, net operating profit increased [...]
Sadiq Khan won’t improve life for London’s renters by wrapping buy-to-let landlords in red tape June 8, 2016 A “referendum on housing.” That was how Sadiq Khan described the London mayoral contest. Access to housing that Londoners can afford is certainly critical to the future success of the capital, and at the heart of the mayor’s plans are substantial reforms to private rented property. As the voice of private landlords, we welcome debate about [...]
At the close: Gushing oil pushes the FTSE 100 higher as miners slip after recent gains June 7, 2016 The FTSE 100 managed a modest rise today, falling back from much bigger gains directly after the open. The blue-chip index added 0.2 per cent to close at 6,284.53. The initial burst came as a result of Royal Dutch Shell earmarking 10 per cent of its oil and gas production assets for sale, which would result in the [...]
There are now nearly one million millionaire households in the UK June 7, 2016 The UK is close to having one million millionaire households, new research out today shows. In 2015, there were 961,000 UK households with $1m (£0.7m) of private financial wealth, up 12.4 per cent on 2014, according to the Boston Consulting Group (BCG). The UK’s millionaire growth is nearly double the global year-on-year rate of increase, [...]