Finance
UK in desperate need for a pay rise as wages drop AGAIN, says Union
Conservative’s flawed economic plan exposed once more as average pay drops even including bonuses GMB says the UK desperately needs a pay rise as average real terms wages drop once again. Even taking into account bonuses real average weekly earning, taking account of inflation, decreased by 0.4% according to today’s figures – and by 0.6% excluding bonuses. Today’s figures are the first time average earnings, including bonuses, have gone into decline since 2014. Just yesterday ONS figures showed inflation has...
Why have payday loan complaints tripled?
Today the Financial Ombudsman released its annual report unveiling a significant rise in the number of complaints about payday lenders. According to Chief Ombudsman, Caroline Wayman, "the most striking story has been the rise in contact we’ve had from people having trouble with credit. We’ve seen around three times last year’s volumes of complaints about payday loans". But aren’t things supposed to have improved a lot recently? The regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) made Wonga write off many loans in...
Top tips on how to find a good Forex broker for you
If you’re looking for a Forex broker you might as well go all the way and make sure that it’s the right one for you. There are certain tells that will allow you to quickly identify whether or not a Forex broker is the right one for you or not. Certain qualities cannot go missing when it comes to this type of provider, and therefore researching whether or not the one that you have your eyes on possesses them is...
Brits scrimping and saving to get by
Brits are scrimping and saving to get by as the cost of living soars to an all time high and the global recession continues to bite. Following research by GMB finding that up to a third of the British workforce are in precarious employment a new study has revealed we are adopting a string of money-saving tasks around the house to lower our bills and monthly spend. Two thirds of people always turn the light off when leaving the room, while 54...
The Era of Digital Money is Almost upon Us
Digital money is here to stay and stakeholders are working hard to propel the transition from cash to electronic transactions. The rapid proliferation of smartphones and social messaging services has served as a powerful driver for the growth of the digital economy. More so, there's a remarkable growth in the Fintech world as innovators try to create digital solutions for financial services. A market report from MasterCard shows that digital money accounted for about 45% of monetary transaction in the...
Are Banks About to Operate Completely Online?
Telephone banking and online banking are rapidly changing the global financial landscape. Consider that in the UK alone, 461 bank branches will be closing in 2017, owing to changing customer preferences. The rapid growth of Internet banking has revolutionized the industry, and changes are taking place at a rate of knots. In fact, since 2015, a dramatic reshaping of banking has occurred. The rise of Internet-only banks is gaining in prominence as tectonic shifts in customer preferences take root. The...
Debit cards to overtake cash by 2018
Debit cards are set to overtake cash as soon as next year, new research has revealed. Rapid growth in the use of contactless cards means cash will be overtaken as Britain’s most frequently used payment method by the end of 2018. Spending on all forms of contactless systems now accounts for 28 per cent of all non-cash transactions in the UK, with total spend exceeding £10 billion for the year in 2016. In December alone, Worldpay processed over £1.5 billion in...
Small shareholders brushed aside in Pallinghurst’s Fabergé corporate play
Research shows that Pallinghurst Resources Ltd, the private equity firm started up by the former boss of BHP Billiton Brain Gilbertson, has palmed off Fabergé by selling it for $142 million in shares to its own London AIM listed gemstone miner Gemfields plc (LON: GEM). This when Faberge had already clocked a $58 million loss over 4 years from 2009 to 2012, thus severely hurting minority public shareholder interests. Palinghurst, listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, is the investment vehicle...
Nearly £1 trillion inheritance money expected pass to the next generation in a decade
The ‘inheritance economy’ is set to boom over the next ten years as rising wealth and higher mortality rates combine to raise the total value of inheritances to £1 trillion over the next decade. The total annual amounts passing from one generation to the next are forecast to rise from the current level of £69 billion to around £115 billion by 2027, according to a ground-breaking report from estate administration specialists Kings Court Trust. This 66 per cent increase in...