Ever tried writing a book? Don’t bother, it’s an endless cycle of self-doubt and recrimination. But do buy my new one, Four Stars, says Joel Golby The idea  The best part of a book is right before you write the book, when you have that idea. An idea is a beautiful, powerful magnet: it lives inside of your brain and pulls little strands and threads and sub-ideas towards itself, out of the ether. You keep stopping abruptly in the middle of Liverpool Street station to write down a little thought. You feel magical, amazing. You glimmer with promise. What a masterpiece this will be! What ..read more

EY, one of the Big Four firms, has been warned that profits could fall by 15 per cent this year due to a slowdown in the market. According to Sky News, partners at EY have been warned by Stuart Gregory, a senior figure in EY’s finance and transformation team, that profit per partner may slip by 15 per cent for its financial year. Last year, the firm recorded an average distributable profit per partner of £761,000 , down from a record £803,000 the year before. At the time, the firm stated that it “re-invested profits into the business, rather than just in partner distributions.” After the firm ..read more

The path for the Bank of England to cut interest rates looks increasingly uncertain, particularly as the US Federal Reserve looks set to wait a while longer before loosening policy. Inflation continued falling in March, but came in ahead of expectations at 3.2 per cent. Annual wage growth also exceeded economists’ predictions, pointing to continuing cost pressure for firms. Combine this with an improving growth outlook, and the case for rate cuts seems much less strong than even a few months ago. Ian Stewart, chief economist at Deloitte said: “A much-diminishing risk of an economic hard landi ..read more

The UK’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) has vowed to push ahead with its plan to pay rewards to whistleblowers and develop a new “pilot programme” to thwart fraud, bribery and corruption, according to its new strategy published today.  The strategy document, which details its ambitions for the next five years, outlines the agency’s plans to “combat crime effectively through intelligence, enforcement and prevention” and make sure the SFO is “a proactive, authoritative player in the global and domestic justice system”.  “This means playing a greater role in the national effort to tackle f ..read more

Almost 450 pubs in London face closure after one of the UK’s biggest hospitality groups Stonegate warned on its profitability, the GMB Union has claimed.   It comes after the operator of over 4,000 pubs –  including the Slug and Lettuce and All Bar One chains – raised concerns about its £2.2bn debt pile.  The Stonegate Pub Company which is owned by private equity group TDR Capital, there is a risk its debt cannot be refinanced by its July 2025 deadline. The group also owns supermarket Asda. “There is an indication that a material uncertainty exists that may cast significan ..read more

Coventry Building Society has agreed terms to buy The Co-operative Bank for £780m as a wave of consolidation sweeps through the mid-sized banking sector. In a joint statement on Thursday, the firms said they had reached an agreement on the non-binding heads of terms for a potential cash acquisition by Coventry, the UK’s third-largest building society, after they entered exclusive talks in December. If completed, the transaction would effectively remutualise Co-op Bank and create a combined group with around £89bn in assets, roughly the current size of Britain’s sixth-biggest high street bank ..read more

From booking flights to creating itineraries, AI (artificial intelligence) is already changing the face of the work trip, says Jenny Southan Towards the end of last year, I spoke at the Dubai Future Forum, an annual gathering of “futurists” from around the world who assembled at the emirate’s space-age Museum of the Future. As you might imagine, there was much discussion around the development and applications of artificial intelligence, as well as potential doomsday scenarios. Experts spoke about things like the emergence of the “non-creative creative class – augmented by AI”; and how p ..read more

High interest rates have created strong headwinds for the global energy transition, according to a new report by Wood Mackenzie.  The report said renewable energy and low-carbon technologies are among the areas “most exposed” to high interest rates.  The high capital intensity and low returns on green projects make them particularly vulnerable to high rates.  “Interest rates… may not come down as far or as quickly as markets anticipate. This increased cost of capital has profound implications for the energy and natural resource industries, particularly the cost and pace of the ..read more

Red Bull Formula 1 team have held discussions with Carlos Sainz over a potential spot on their team in 2025. Ferrari disposed of Spaniard Sainz to make room for the incoming Lewis Hamilton. But Red Bull director Helmut Marko has confirmed his side has spoken to Sainz. “We are talking to [Carlos Sainz], he is having his best season in Formula 1, but he has a very lucrative offer from Audi and we cannot match or beat that,” Marko said. With current world champion Max Verstappen unlikely to leave Red Bull, despite Mercedes boss Toto Wolff insisting “never say never” when approached about a move ..read more

Kemi Badenoch has accused the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) of regulatory “overreach” after the watchdog outlined plans to boost diversity and inclusion in the City last year. In a letter to the FCA’s chief Nikhil Rathi, seen by City A.M., the business and trade secretary said the regulators proposed rules on diversity will be a “distraction” for companies and could hamper the government’s efforts to prioritise growth in the sector. “I am concerned about regulatory overreach having read the FCA’s consultation on proposals to introduce a new regulatory framework on diversity and inclusion ..read more