Wise goes to the US. Will its founder’s supercharged voting rights follow? | Nils Pratley

Back in 2021, the arrival on the London stock market of Wise, a rapidly expanding money transfer company, generated a feelgood factor at a useful moment.It came a month after overhyped Deliveroo flopped on debut. And, since Wise was a pure fintech business, as opposed to a pizza delivery outfit with an app, there was reason to think the UK might be getting its act together in the sector that politicians swoon over. Shoreditch’s finest, and its Estonian founders, would show the way in UK fintech. Wise sported a £9bn valuation

British Gas owner strikes £20bn gas deal with Norway’s state energy company

The owner of British Gas has struck a £20bn deal with Norway’s state energy company to buy enough gas to meet nearly 10% of the UK’s needs for the next decade.Under the agreement, Centrica will buy around 5bn cubic meters of gas from Equinor – enough to supply 5m UK homes – every year from this winter until 2035 at the prevailing market rate.It is the latest long-term deal between the UK and Norway, which has been one of Britain’s largest sources of imported gas for the last 50 years. But in a nod to Britain’s net zero agenda, the latest agreement will include a clause that allows the UK to swap gas imports for emissions-free hydrogen from Equinor’s UK hydrogen plant.Equinor is working with Centrica and the energy company SSE on multiple low carbon hydrogen projects on the north bank of the Humber

ECB president Christine Lagarde says she’s ‘determined’ to complete her term, after speculation of early exit to run WEF – as it happened

Christine Lagarde is then asked whether she has spoken to the World Economic Forum about becoming chair of WEF, and leaving her position at the European Central Bank early.[The Financial Times reported last week that WEF founder Klaus Schwab had claimed that “practical arrangements” — such as an apartment in Switzerland — had been made for Lagarde to take over the organisation before her tenure at the ECB ends in 2027.]Damn, Lagarde hit with a WEF question straight off the bat!Lagarde replies that her own future is “far less important” than the future of the eurozone economy and monetary policy.She tells reporters in Frankfurt:I can very firmly tell you that I have always been, and am, fully determined to deliver on my mission.And I’m determined to complete my term

ECB cuts interest rates to 2% in effort to bolster flagging eurozone growth

The European Central Bank has cut interest rates to 2% in an effort to boost flagging economic growth across the eurozone.The ECB, making its eighth quarter-point cut in a year, said the 20-member currency bloc needed a reduction in the cost of borrowing as it reeled from the damage caused by Donald Trump’s trade wars.Economic growth has slowed across the eurozone and especially in France, Germany and Italy, while the outlook for next year is weak, according to forecasts by the EU.The move cuts the cost of borrowing to less than half the level in the UK, where the Bank of England last month cut interest rates to 4.25%, and the level set in the US by the Federal Reserve of between 4

Dr Martens promises not to raise prices this year despite US tariffs

Dr Martens has vowed not to increase prices this year and will continue sourcing from Vietnam and Laos, despite the threat of cripplingly high tariffs on the south-east Asian countries, where the bulk of its shoes are made.The British footwear brand, best known for its boots with distinctive yellow stitching, said most of its autumn and winter stock would be either in the market or in transit by the start of July, around the time the 90-day pause on an array of tariffs imposed by the US is due to come to an end.Almost two-thirds (62%) of Dr Martens footwear is made in Vietnam, and a further 31% is produced in neighbouring Laos. Both countries were previously hit with some of the highest US tariffs, after China – 46% for Vietnam and 48% for Laos – before Donald Trump’s temporary pause reduced them to 10%.Despite this, Dr Martens said it was not considering moving any of its manufacturing to other locations

Stock exchange dealt another blow as £12bn fintech ditches main London listing

The online payments company Wise has said it will move its main share listing to the US, in the latest blow to London’s beleaguered stock market.Wise, which is one of the biggest financial technology businesses in the country and has been listed in London since 2021, said on Thursday that it now intends to dual list its shares in the US and the UK in an attempt to attract more investors and boost its value.The company’s chief executive, Kristo Käärmann, said moving its main listing would help “drive greater awareness of Wise in the US, the biggest market opportunity in the world for our products today, and enabling better access to the world’s deepest and most liquid capital market.“A dual listing would also enable us to continue serving our UK-based owners effectively, as part of our ongoing commitment to the UK. The UK is home to some of the best talent in the world in financial services and technology, and we will continue to invest in our presence here to fuel our UK and global growth