Ashmore Share Price Plummets After Iran War Leaves Investors Sitting on Their Hands
Ashmore Group’s shares slumped 5.6% to 209.4p after the firm reported a 3% drop in assets under management to $50.7 billion, down from $52.5 billion a quarter earlier. The decline was driven by a $0.9 billion reduction in asset values and an equal amount of net outflows, which the firm linked to heightened volatility from the Iran‑US conflict. While local‑currency AUM grew 4.4%, equity and external‑debt holdings remained flat or fell, and a large institutional redemption from a blended‑debt fund accelerated the outflow. Ashmore warned that investors will likely stay cautious until the geopolitical situation stabilises.
Wall Street Scales to Record Highs as Investors Bet the End of the Iran War Is in Sight
Wall Street surged to fresh record highs on Wednesday as investors grew optimistic that the US‑Iran war may soon end. The S&P 500 breached the 7,000‑point barrier for the first time, closing at 7,022.9, while the Nasdaq jumped 1.6% to...
Easyjet Shares Grounded After Revealing £560m Hit From Iran War
EasyJet warned that it will post a pre‑tax loss of £540‑£560 million (about $700 million) for the first half of its financial year after the Iran‑Israel conflict drove fuel prices to record highs. The airline said a rushed purchase of 18% of...
Standard Life Snaps up Aegon UK for £2bn to Create Savings Giant
Standard Life announced a £2bn ($2.5bn) acquisition of Aegon UK, the country’s largest investment platform. The combined entity will serve almost 16 million customers and manage about £480bn ($610bn) in assets, creating the UK’s top retirement savings and income business. Standard...
Has Nationwide’s Debbie Crosbie Been Vindicated?
Nationwide was crowned Britain’s best bank by Forbes and Statista, a title that highlights its strong current‑account switching performance and high customer‑satisfaction scores. The mutual’s recent £2.3 billion (~$2.9 billion) Virgin Money takeover and a £200 (~$250) cash incentive for new switchers...
Barclays and Deutsche Most at Risk to Private Credit ‘Profit Blow’
Barclays and Deutsche Bank are among the European banks most exposed to the private‑credit market, with roughly £20bn (~$25bn) and €25.9bn (~$28bn) of loans tied to the sector, representing 4.4% and just over 5% of their total loan books respectively....
Wall Street Bankers’ Bonuses Leapfrog City in ‘Less Impressive’ Year
Wall Street bankers saw their average 2025 bonus rise to $154,344, a 5.85% increase that outpaced the City of London’s 3.5% growth to $154,215. Despite record‑high profits at major U.S. banks, the payout boost fell short of the 50% rise...
FTSE 100 Live: Stocks Uneven as Trump’s Strait of Hormuz Blockade Begins
The United States launched a naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, effectively halting commercial traffic and intensifying the Middle‑East conflict that began in late February. Vice‑President JD Vance accused Iran of "economic terrorism" and said President Donald Trump is...
European Banking Jobs Face AI Reset ‘Not Mass Job Losses – for Now’
European banks are poised for a modest hiring surge as AI reshapes their workforces, with Bloomberg Intelligence forecasting a 4% average headcount increase across top lenders. The growth stems from a trade‑off: routine middle‑office roles are being trimmed while demand...
UK’s Best Bank Revealed – and It’s Not a Bank
Forbes and Statista’s 2025 global banking survey crowned Nationwide as the United Kingdom’s top‑ranked bank, even though it is technically a building society. The study surveyed 54,000 respondents across 34 countries, weighting trust, terms, service, digital capability and advice. Nationwide’s...
Close Brothers Set for £320m Motor Finance Hit as It Eyes Legal Rows
Close Brothers announced a £320 million (≈$406 million) provision for the FCA’s motor‑finance redress scheme, matching its earlier estimate. The charge will shave 25 basis points off its CET1 capital ratio, leaving it at 14%, still above the 12‑13% target. Analysts warn...
Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square Launches Bid for Universal Music Group
Bill Ackman's Pershing Square has launched a $63.5 billion takeover bid for Universal Music Group, proposing a merger that would create a new US‑listed entity and replace UMG’s Amsterdam listing. Shareholders would receive $5.05 in cash plus 0.77 shares of the...
Virgin Money Swallowed up by Nationwide as Top Boss Exits
Nationwide completed its £2.9bn ($3.6bn) acquisition of Virgin Money, creating the UK’s second‑largest retail bank behind Lloyds. The deal netted Nationwide about £2.3bn ($2.9bn) in synergies and gave Sir Richard Branson a £724m ($905m) windfall. Virgin Money CEO Chris Rhodes,...
London’s Top 2025 Listings Tumble in Blow to IPO Revival Hopes
London’s five largest 2025 IPOs have collectively lost about 26% of their value in Q1 2026, leaving all but one trading below their issue price. The FTSE 250 index fell 5.4% while the FTSE 100 rose over 2% in the...
‘A Whole Civilisation Will Die Tonight’: Trump Ramps up Iran Threats as Deadline Draws Nearer
Donald Trump escalated rhetoric against Iran, posting a bombastic Truth Social message that a "whole civilisation will die tonight" and setting an 8 p.m. Eastern deadline for possible strikes. The warning sent European markets into early‑day volatility, with the FTSE 100,...