Coca-Cola considers grounds for sale of Costa August 23, 2025 Soft drinks giant Coca-Cola has called in bankers for exploratory talks regarding a sale of coffee chain Costa. The Coca-Cola company, which acquired Costa over six years ago, has held talks with a number of potential bidders including private equity firms, according to Sky News. Investment bank Lazard is working with the firm to explore [...]
Barclays investment bank powers £1bn profit jump in first half July 29, 2025 Barclays rounded off the first half of 2025 with a major bump in profit as its all-important investment banking arm rallied on global markets turmoil. The FTSE 100 bank delivered a 28 per cent increase in profit before tax as it topped £5.2bn for the first six months of the year. The firm’s investment bank [...]
Exclusive: Panmure Liberum to ‘reinvigorate’ City market with banking tie-up July 15, 2025 Investment bank Panmure Liberum has joined forces with Nedbank in a push to expand their reach across equity capital markets and drive dual-listings across the UK and South Africa. London-headquartered Panmure will collaborate with Nedbank’s corporate and investment banking division to produce equity research across UK and South African markets. The deal aims to provide [...]
UK’s financial services stronghold slips July 10, 2025 The UK’s position as a financial services leader has cracked as under-investment and staff reductions weigh on the sector. Nearly half of senior financial professionals believe the UK’s dominance is waning, research from the CRIF found. Over 40 per cent said they would no longer consider the country a global leader in the industry. Sara [...]
British banking chiefs take a leaf from Elon Musk’s DOGE July 4, 2025 The chiefs of the UK’s Big Four banks are taking a leaf out of the Elon Musk playbook in their strident bid to slash costs. Natwest’s Paul Thwaite, Lloyds’ Charlie Nunn, HSBC’s Georges Elhedery and Barclays’ CS Venkatkrishnan are in the midst of major cost-cutting endeavours that bear similarities to Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency [...]
City watchdog takes on advice gap to unlock growth June 30, 2025 The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has launched a new form of financial help dubbed ‘targeted support’ in a bid to encourage greater consumer participation in financial markets and unlock more investment-led growth. The City regulator will target consumers with common financial characteristics, such as unsustainable pension drawdown, inadequate retirement savings and excess cash not being [...]
Cavendish chiefs: Markets need tax incentive to turn heads June 27, 2025 The bosses of investment bank Cavendish have joined calls to use more attractive tax policy to boost market listings, amid a waning backdrop for the London Stock Exchange. The London-listed company swung back into profit on Wednesday, but did so battling against woeful mergers and acquisition volumes. Takings from M&A slumped 55 per cent on [...]
Cavendish shakes off M&A woes to swing to profit June 26, 2025 Cavendish swung back into profit in the latest financial year despite a sharp drop in revenue in its mergers and acquisitions division. The London-listed investment bank turned a slim £700m in pre-tax profit for the year ending March 31 but this marked a hefty shift from the £4.3m loss in 2024. The firm said its [...]
Cavendish shares eye year high after rejecting deals unit takeover June 24, 2025 Shares in investment bank Cavendish spiked on Tuesday as the firm confirmed it had rejected takeover interest in its deals unit after facing private equity-backed interest. Cavendish had been approached regarding a deal that would break up the London-listed investment bank by Smith and Williamson (S&W). The value of the offer remains unclear, Sky News [...]
Peel Hunt: Bonuses scrapped for third year running June 18, 2025 Peel Hunt has scrapped bonuses for its top executives for a third year running as losses at the investment bank continued. Chief executive Steven Fine took home a pay packet of £465,000 for the year to 31 March, 2025, while chief financial and operating officer Sunil Dhall received £316,000, according to its latest annual report. [...]