Credit, collections & insolvency news
Redwood Bank, a new UK SME Business bank, has secured a banking licence following approval from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA). Redwood will now enter its mobilisation phase and expects to launch to customers later in 2017. Redwood Bank is wholly owned by Redwood Financial Partners Ltd (RFP), a company…
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HM Revenue and Customs has launched a new hotline for the public to report fraud and evasion in the fight against tax fraud. This service will replace the two separate tax evasion and customs hotlines with one, streamlining HMRC’s intelligence gathering on tax fraud. Customers can report all kinds of tax fraud and evasion on the…
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With the announcement that the new debt pre-action protocol (PAP) has been approved and the implementation date set for 1 October 2017, debt recovery specialists are examining what the changes will mean for creditors and debtors. The main departure from the previous regime is that sole traders are now to be considered an individual rather…
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Peer-to-Peer real estate lender Relendex has confirmed full authorisation from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Law firm Howard Kennedy has advised Relendex on the process. The Howard Kennedy team was led by Daniel Tunkel, Partner and Head of Regulation, supported by Financial Regulation Associate David Gilinsky. Daniel Galinksy said: “Peer-to-peer lenders have generally struggled to secure full…
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One in every five business energy bills contains errors according to a research report by Inenco. The report also believes that businesses could be sitting on half a billion pounds in inaccurate charges and miscalculated utility bills. Energy bills mistakes include incorrect rates, human error, complex data flows and meter reading errors. Collectively, these inaccuracies…
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With £820million of new anti-tax avoidance measures announced in today’s Budget, Andrew Tate, president of insolvency and restructuring trade body R3, says: The government needs to think more carefully about the impact its anti-tax avoidance tools have on those individuals affected. Tackling the abuse of the tax system is needed, but efforts to do so should…
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Philip King Chief Executive of the Chartered Institute of Credit Management has refuted suggestions that new government financial reporting rules will increase the burden on big businesses, and says greater transparency will help improve customer/supplier relationships. From next month, all big businesses will be obliged to post their payment records on a dedicated government website on how…
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Businesses across England and Wales are grappling with the huge business rates burden ahead of the controversial revaluation in April new research reveals. An exclusive investigation by CVS Business Rent & Rates Specialists has found nearly 200,000 businesses were hauled before a Magistrate in 2015/16 for non-payment of their business rates fuelling claims the system…
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The HMRC collected an additional £140 million via investigations into unpaid Capital Gains Tax (CGT) over the last year* shows data provided by HMRC to Collyer Bristow. Collyer Bristow explains that £55 million of the extra CGT related to investigations into ‘wealthy individuals’ and mid-sized businesses, whilst the remaining £85 million was obtained from everyday taxpayers and small businesses. “The statistics make clear that this area…
Read moreThe £15 million supplementary levy imposed on mortgage brokers by the FSCS will hit the best-qualified brokers hardest, says the National Association of Commercial Finance Brokers (NACFB). Rob Lankey, CEO of the NACFB, said “Of course we welcome any move that protects borrowers. The steps we’ve taken to embrace regulation have not been cost-free and our…
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The Forum of Private Business (FPB) has welcomed the announcement from the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) that late payment of small business invoices is to be a focus of the Minister for Business. They claim that the issuance of guidance to large businesses on how to pay on time is probably…
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The HMRC collected £178 million via its Annual Tax on Enveloped Dwellings (ATED) last year. This is up by £62 million (53%) on the amount collected the previous year, says Collyer Bristow, a leading private client law firm. Collyer Bristow explains that ATED was first introduced in April 2013 and is payable on high-value UK residential property…
Read moreThe Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) has called for a more user-friendly regulatory system from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), in its response to the regulator’s ‘Future Mission’ consultation. Fiona Hoyle, head of Consumer and Mortgage Finance at the FLA, said: “Consumer credit firms now account for at least 35,000 of the 56,000 regulated by…
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