News

David Biddle Standard Life Wealth, the discretionary fund manager, has announced the appointment of David Biddle as senior business development manager with responsibility for engagement with Professional Connections throughout the UK.

Steven Jansch The insolvency regime seems to be in a perpetual state of flux, writes Steven Jansch, partner and head of insolvency at Gilson Gray.

Financial firms hiring senior staff will need references going back a minimum of five years to prevent bankers covering up past misconduct, the Bank of England has said. The move marks a climbing down from a previously proposed longer timeframe.

National Australia Bank no longer has any shares in Glasgow-based Clydesdale Bank after sale manager Morgan Stanley exercised an over-allotment option. NAB had granted the option in respect of 28,673,323 ordinary shares at the offer price of 180 pence per ordinary share, worth £52m in total.

A new employee benefit - enabling employees in the UK to take control of their finances, especially those who are experiencing difficulties managing their debt – is now available to one million people across the country. SalaryFinance offers UK businesses an employee benefit allowing staff to cons

Global accountants PwC have announced that troubled shoe retailer Brantano has been sold. Tony Barrell, Mike Jervis and Rob Hunt of PwC were appointed joint administrators of Brantano (UK) Limited on 21 January.

John Swinney Revenue Scotland has received its 100,000th tax return, ten months on from the creation of the first Scottish taxes in more than 300 years.

The number of people moving home in Scotland continued to increase last year, according to the latest Bank of Scotland homemover review. The introduction of the Scottish Government’s new land and buildings transaction tax (LBTT) which has provided a savings boost for many homemovers, combined with

Scottish footfall in January rose 1.5 per cent year-on-year and were up on the 0.2 per cent rise recorded in December, according to latest data from the Scottish Retail Consortium. The result was the best performance since March 2015 and is ahead of the UK average.

Oil and gas firms need to expand their focus beyond short-term issues such as tumbling oil prices and over supply if they are to successfully navigate the growing range of disruptive forces that will shape the industry, according to accounts PwC’s New Energy Futures report. In the wake of December

Emma Chalmers The Perthshire property market continues to show encouraging signs of activity, according to latest figures released by Scotland’s estate agents, CKD Galbraith.

Katherine Garrett-Cox Dundee-based Alliance Trust Investments has announced this morning that chief executive Katherine Garrett-Cox is to stand down after almost eight years in the role.

Fred Goodwin Disgraced former Royal Bank of Scotland chief executive Fred Goodwin has been named among a group of witnesses called on to give evidence in a £4 billion class action legal case brought against the still 73 per cent bailed-out bank by shareholders.

A shortlist of 42 Scottish directors has been announced by the Institute of Directors for this year’s Director of the Year Awards, to be held at Glasgow’s Crowne Plaza Hotel on Thursday 17 March.

Sat Plaha The latest FraudTrack report from accountants BDO shows that the total value of reported fraud in Scotland during 2015 rose 80.9 per cent to £18.164m from £10.038m in 2014.