Banker bonuses to be paid faster after UK regulators loosen rules

UK regulators will speed up bonus payouts for high-earning bankers, watering down another important change introduced after the 2008 financial crisis.Since 2015 senior bankers have had to wait eight years before receiving their full bonuses to ensure individuals could be held financially accountable for any wrongdoing that came to light years later, or even after they left the bank.On Wednesday, the Bank of England and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said they were halving that to four years.The watchdogs also went further than a previous consultation, saying they would now require a much smaller proportion of bonuses to be withheld from high-earning staff over the period. From Thursday, only 60% of the payout that falls above £660,000 will have to be deferred

Capita fined £14m for data protection failings in 2023 cyber-attack

The outsourcing company Capita has been fined £14m for data protection failings after hackers stole the personal information of 6.6 million people, including staff details and those of its clients’ customers.John Edwards, the UK information commissioner who levied the fine, said the March 2023 data theft from the group and companies it supported, including 325 pension providers, caused anxiety and stress for those affected.The £8m fine for Capita and £6m penalty for its Capita Pension Solutions arm come as UK businesses battle a wave of cyber-attacks in the recent wave that has crippled companies such as M&S and Jaguar Land Rover.Capita discovered the attack within 10 minutes but did not shut down the device that had been targeted by a malicious file for 58 hours, during which time the attacker was able to exploit its systems

Vets could be made to cap prescription prices after UK watchdog investigation

Vets in the UK could be forced to cap prescription prices after an investigation by the markets watchdog found pet owners may be paying twice as much for some common medicines from practices than online.The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) found pet owners pay 16.6% more on average at large vet groups than at independent practices. It said the £6.3bn market was not fit for purpose and needed to be modernised

A quiet bite in: Charlie Bigham launches £29.95 ready meals for home diners

British consumers are looking to treat themselves with an alternative to dining out despite a squeeze on household finances, according to the food entrepreneur Charlie Bigham who is launching luxurious ready meals costing up to £29.95.The supermarket supplier is selling a new five-option range, which includes a venison bourguignon made with wild-caught venison from the Scottish Highlands, in an attempt to snare consumers saving on the cost of a night out.It puts the company in competition with cafes and restaurants, which have been forced to put up prices as costs such as labour, energy and tax soar.“If you go out to a restaurant or a gastropub or whatever, you might notice at the end of the meal that the bill seems to have crept up quite a lot,” says Bigham

JP Morgan boss says more ‘cockroaches’ will emerge after private credit sector failures

The boss of JP Morgan, Jamie Dimon, has warned over further losses linked to the private credit sector, saying more “cockroaches” could emerge after the collapse of the sub-prime auto lender Tricolor and the car parts supplier First Brands.The bank said on Tuesday that although it had no exposure to First Brands, which sells car parts across the US, it had taken a $170m (£128m) hit from Tricolor, which collapsed amid fraud allegations last month.Both firms had been backed by private credit within the so-called shadow banking sector, which is not directly regulated and is not forced to disclose the level of risks on their books. Regulated banks such as JP Morgan are exposed to the private credit sector, either by lending directly to private businesses, or lending to the private credit firms themselves.The links between banks and private credit have raised concerns about the fallout of any downturn across the $3tn (£2

UK faces highest inflation in G7 this year and next, IMF warns

Consumers in the UK are expected to suffer the highest inflation in the G7 group of leading economies this year and next, the International Monetary Fund has warned.As policymakers gathered in Washington for its annual meetings, the IMF said prices would rise in Britain at a faster pace in 2025 and 2026 than it had originally forecast at its last update in July.According to the fund’s latest World Economic Outlook (WEO), published on Tuesday, UK inflation is on course to average 3.4% this year, up from its previous estimate of 3.2%, and then slow slightly to 2