FRC Chair-in-waiting grilled over holding seven other board roles July 15, 2026 MPs have raised concerns over whether the former chief executive of Virgin Money can realistically juggle her role as Chair of the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) alongside seven other board and chair positions. Dame Jayne-Anne Gadhia was named by the government on Monday as the next Chair of the accounting watchdog, set to take over [...]
As it happened: Stocks reverse losses after Trump threatens harder strikes on Iran; Oil at four-week high July 15, 2026 Welcome back to the Morning Wire liveblog. Oil prices have reached a four-week high after the Strait of Hormuz became too unsafe for ships travel through following the exchange of strikes between the US and Iran. Brent crude – the international benchmark for oil prices – tipped over the $87 per barrel mark on Tuesday [...]
You don’t have to be psychopathic to work in the City… but it helps July 15, 2026 The perfect CV? 60 per cent genius and 40 per cent psychopath, says author and former 'Cityboy' Geraint Anderson in today's Notebook.
Football ‘muddling through’ in face of growing ‘tensions’, says Boston Consulting Group July 15, 2026 Football is in danger of eating itself unless the sport comes together to address growing inequalities, a consultancy hired by the Independent Football Regulator has warned. Boston Consulting Group, which has worked with the IFR to produce the State of the Game report that will shape the regulator’s approach to English football, has today published [...]
Activist investor pushes for M&C Saatchi break-up in ‘next year’ July 15, 2026 The investment firm pushing to break up M&C Saatchi has predicted that the advertising agency will not exist in its current structure within a year, in a move that would see one of Britain’s most well-known advertising agencies depart from the stock exchange. Christopher Mills, the founder of notorious activist investment shop Harwood Capital, said [...]
A £3bn reckoning that will reshape buy now, pay later July 15, 2026 Buy now, pay later providers are cheering the arrival of new regulations.In this week’s column Samuel Norman considers how the industry could be reshaped. Five years ago, the government revealed plans to crack down on the buy now, pay later market after an industry review found financial risks posed by the ease with which consumers [...]
Government accelerates social media crackdown with midnight curfews July 14, 2026 Teenagers will face a default midnight social media curfew and stripped-back social media feeds under the government’s latest crackdown on addictive online features – but they will be able to switch the restrictions off themselves. Tech secretary Liz Kendall has announced social media platforms will disable auto-play and infinite scroll-style recommendations and restrict overnight access [...]
Bank of England governor opens door to ‘simplifying’ financial rulebook July 14, 2026 Andrew Bailey opened the door to simplifying the UK’s financial rulebook as he joined Rachel Reeves for the Chancellor’s third and final Mansion House speech on Tuesday evening. The Bank of England governor distanced himself from capping taxes on banks and financial institutions, but said existing rules should help “flush out supranormal profits” by “reducing [...]
Tom Kerridge: No good restaurant has ever been run by accountants July 14, 2026 No good restaurant or pub has ever been run by accountants, celebrity chef Tom Kerridge told Morning Wire as he pushes for a VAT cut for hospitality firms. The TV personality and restaurateur has spearheaded lobbying efforts for the government to slash VAT for hospitality companies, a move which he says would offer the struggling [...]
England v Argentina: Bellingham bounce attracts more bets than Messi to score July 14, 2026 Jude Bellingham’s emergence as England’s World Cup hero has seen him backed by more punters than Lionel Messi to score in Wednesday’s semi-final with Argentina. Data from Sportradar, which processes betting tickets for 250 gambling firms worldwide, reveals that Bellingham has accounted for more than half (52 per cent) of wagers in the goalscorer market. [...]