The IoD Directors’ Economic Confidence Index, which measures business leader optimism in prospects for the UK economy, edged up to -59 in January 2025 from -61 in December. However, confidence remains at historically depressed levels. Business leader confidence in their own organisations declined to +6 in January, from +8 in December. There was also a…
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British businesses increased pessimism in January, marking five consecutive months of declining corporate confidence according to the Lloyds Bank Business Barometer.The Barometer fell by two points to 37%, its lowest level in a year, following a £25 billion tax increase announced in October. Despite the dip, confidence is still above the long-term average of 29%. In previous…
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One in five (19%) UK-listed companies issued a profit warning in 2024, the third highest annual proportion in 25 years, behind only the 2020 pandemic (35%) and the impact of the dot-com bubble burst and 9/11 in 2001 (23%). EY-Parthenon’s latest Profit Warnings report found that UK-listed companies issued 274 profit warnings last year – including 71…
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The former boss of a West London bakery who overstated his company’s turnover to secure a maximum-value Covid loan has been banned from acting as a director for ten years. Azizullrahman Akbari, obtained a £50,000 Bounce Back Loan just weeks into the pandemic, claiming the turnover for his New Watan Bakery Limited company was more…
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Recognise Bank has announced it has appointed Caroline Luxmore as its new Chief Commercial Officer. Luxmore will lead the Bank’s lending and savings teams with the aim of growing the Bank’s balance sheet by diversifying its offering to create a sustainable platform on which to grow the business. Luxmore has over 25 years’ experience in…
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Private sector firms expect another significant fall in activity over the next three months (weighted balance of -22%), according to the Confederation of British Industry’s (CBI) latest Growth Indicator. Expectations are broadly unchanged from December, which was the weakest in over two years. This pessimism was widespread across the private sector. Business volumes in the…
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The latest ‘Red Flag Alert’ report from Begbies Traynor reveals a worrying surge in the number of businesses in the UK entering ‘critical’ financial distress in the final quarter of 2024. In Quarter 4 (Q$) 2024, ‘critical’ financial distress rose by 50.2% to 46,853 companies, underscoring a deteriorating outlook. Of the 22 sectors covered by…
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Consumer confidence in the UK’s economy has plummeted, with the British Retail Consortium’s (BRC) consumer sentiment index revealing a drop to -34 in January, down from -27 in December. The survey indicates that only those aged 18-27 expect improvement, while two-thirds of individuals aged 60-78 anticipate a worsening economy. Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the…
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Time Finance has announced the appointment of Greg Hussey as Head of Risk in its Invoice Finance division. Hussey joins with over 30 years of experience, most recently as a consultant working with a niche invoice financier, as well as Head of Risk at Santago Financial Solutions and Managing Director at Calverton Finance. He has held…
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Two in five SMEs (42%) cite rising costs and taxes as their biggest concerns, with 70% questioning the Government’s support for SMEs according to new research from iwoca. The research also highlighted the looming threat of higher taxes under the current Government comes in close second—a primary worry for two in five (40%) owners. Leaders of the…
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New research by Intuit Quickbooks has found that 27% of small businesses relied on credit cards for operations in 2024, with 33% charging over 25% of their monthly expenses. Intuit Quickbooks says that this trend highlights a deeper issue of restricted access to affordable traditional financing, as banks become more selective in lending. In addition,…
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A former London minicab driver is subject to 11 years of stringent sanctions after the Official Receiver found he abused the Covid loan scheme to claim over £47,000 more than his business was entitled to. Huseyin Houssein, a former private hire driver from Nash Road in Edmonton, North London, applied for a £50,000 Bounce Back…
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The UK economy experienced a modest growth of 0.1% in November, falling short of the anticipated 0.2% increase, as reported by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Liz McKeown, Director of Economic Statistics at the ONS, said “The economy continues to be broadly flat, having grown slightly in November following two small falls in the…
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