Boohoo bidsfor troubledKaren Millen

BUSINESS WITH PERSONALITYPORT IN A STORMFLAGSHIP POLICYCOULD BOOST JOBSAND GROWTH P14

ON THE DEFENSIVE ASHESDEFEAT LEAVES ENGLANDASKING QUESTIONS P18

TUESDAY 6 AUGUST 2019 ISSUE 3,429 FREECITYAM.COM

JESS CLARK

@jclarkjournoRETAIL tycoon Mike Ashley’s SportsDirect last night bought strugglinghigh street brand Jack Wills out ofadministration for £12.75m.

Ashley won a race againstbillionaire and retail rival Philip Day,who owns the Edinburgh WoollenMill Group, to snap up the “preppy”

fashion chain, adding the business tohis expanding retail empire.

The businessman has recentlyacquired Evans Cycles and Sofa.com,and last year bought beleaguereddepartment store House of Fraser outof administration.

Will Wright and Chris Pole fromKPMG were appointed as jointadministrators yesterday afternoonbefore the Jack Wills brand and its

UK trading assets were immediatelysold to Sports Direct.

City A.M. understands Day’s offerwould have avoided anadministration process.

All 100 stores across the UK andIreland, the distribution centre andall employees will transfer to SportsDirect.

Last night Sports Direct’s MichaelMurray said the company will seek to

renegotiate rents with Jack Wills’landlords in order to help “restore itto its former glory”.

The company’s directors willcontinue to assess options for theretailer’s international business.

The embattled fashion brand hadbeen experiencing mounting cashflow pressures in recent years as itstruggled in an increasinglychallenging high street environment.

FTSE 100 ▼ 7,223.85 -183.21 FTSE 250 ▼ 18,871.42 -381.75 DOW ▼ 25,717.74 -767.27 NASDAQ ▼ 7,726.04 -278.03 £/$▼ 1.214 -0.002 £/€▼ 1.084 -0.011 €/$▲ 1.121 +0.011

HARRY ROBERTSON

@henrygrobertsonCHINA’s currency slumped againstthe dollar yesterday to a level not seensince the financial crisis, sparking aglobal equities sell-off amid fears of afurther escalation of trade tensions.

The renminbi, which the Chinesegovernment lets fluctuate two percent either side of a set figure, fell toan 11-year low so that one dollarbought 7.0458 yuan late last night.

The dramatic fall came after USPresident Donald Trump last weekslapped 10 per cent tariffs on $300bn(£247bn) of Chinese goods in a

significant escalation of the two sides’trade war. China vowed to retaliate.

Trump responded to the renminbi’sslide yesterday by accusing China of“currency manipulation”.

A lower renminbi makes Chinesegoods more competitive.

He tweeted last night: “Are you lis-tening Federal Reserve? This is amajor violation which will greatlyweaken China over time! ... It is noweven more obvious to everyone thatAmericans are not paying for the Tar-iffs – they are being paid for compli-ments of China, and the US is takingin tens of Billions of Dollars!”

Stock markets around the world

slumped into the red with investorsviewing the falling renminbi as a signthat China has given up hope of a res-olution to the ongoing trade conflict.

The FTSE 100 led European stockmarkets downwards, falling 2.5 percent as investors also took the risingchances of a no-deal Brexit into con-sideration. Germany’s benchmarkDax index fell 1.8 per cent, while thepan-European Euronext 100 dropped3.4 per cent.

In the US markets endured theirworst day of 2019, with the tech-heavyNasdaq falling 3.5 per cent while theS&P 500 shed three per cent.

Merian Global Investors’ Nick Wall

said China holding its currency steadyhad been “seen as key if there was anychance of trade talks succeeding”.

Investors piled into so-called safe-haven assets on the move. The Japan-ese yen ended the day flat, while yieldson US 10-year government bonds fell0.14 per cent. Yields move inversely toprices.

Julian Evans-Pritchard, senior Chinaeconomist at Capital Economics, saidof China: “Given that their goal is pre-sumably to offset some of the impactfrom additional US tariffs, they arelikely to allow the currency to weakenfurther, probably by five to 10 per centover the coming quarters.”

Mike Ashley wins battle of Wills with swoop on troubled retailer

CHINASHOCKSGLOBALSTOCKSTRADING FLOORS SCRAMBLEIN WAKE OF RENMINBI FALL

AUGUST GRAHAM

@AugustGraham CONCERNS were raised forover 1,000 jobs last night as itemerged that online retailerBoohoo appears set to snap upBritish brand Karen Millen.

Sky News reported thatnegotiations continued intothe late hours, with the dealto be finalised when Deloitteis appointed as administratorto Karen Millen.

One of the UK’s best-knownhigh street brands, KarenMillen was put up for sale byits Icelandic owners in June.The six-week process was ledby Deloitte.

Karen Millen, which hasexpanded across 50 countries,made a loss of £1.4m last year.Sales reached £162m in theyear to February 2018.

Boohoo’s takeover wouldalso include fellow fashionbrand Coast, which KarenMillen bought out ofadministration last October,saving 600 jobs.

Sources told Sky last nightthat the firms were beingbought through a processcalled pre-packadministration. It wasinevitable after the companywas hit by tough conditionson the high street, they said.

One analyst told thebroadcaster that most of thecompany’s 1,100 workers arelikely to lose their jobs.

£SHAPE OF BRITISH RETAIL: P3

CITYAM.COM02 TUESDAY 6 AUGUST 2019NEWS

MURDOCH TAKES CONTROLOF TRIBECA FILM FESTIVALJames Murdoch is to partner withRobert De Niro after leading theacquisition of a controlling stake in thecompany behind New York’s TribecaFilm Festival, which was co-founded bythe Hollywood star. Lupa Systems, theinvestment vehicle founded byMurdoch this year in the wake of hisfather Rupert’s $71bn (£58.4bn) sale ofmost of 21st Century Fox to Disney, isleading a consortium acquiring amajority stake in Tribeca Enterprises .

ACKMAN SELLS STAKES INUNITED TECH AND ADPPershing Square has sold off its stakesin United Technologies and Automatic

Data Processing, two targets of thefund’s few public shareholder activistcampaigns in recent years. BillAckman’s hedge fund lobbied againstUnited’s proposed merger in June.

RETIRING POLICE COULD BEGIVEN PENSION INCENTIVESPolice officers about to retire could beoffered pension incentives to retainthem and help hit Boris Johnson’starget of 20,000 extra police in threeyears. A working group of senior policechiefs will consider expanding a schemepioneered by Scotland Yard to combat ashortfall of experienced officers.

BERKELEY TEARS UP PAYPOLICY AFTER OUTCRY Berkeley Group has drawn up a newpay policy for bosses including itsfounder Tony Pidgley after outrage overpayouts worth tens of millions ofpounds. It handed its three highest-paidexecutives a combined £21m last year.

GATEHOUSE MEDIA PARENTTO BUY GANNETT FOR $1.4BNThe country’s two largest newspaperchains agreed to combine theirbusinesses in a roughly $1.4bn (£1.2bn)deal, further consolidating an industryreeling from strong economicheadwinds. New Media, the parent ofGatehouse Media, is buying Gannett in acash-and-stock transaction.

MARRIOTT TAKES $126MCHARGE RELATED TO BREACHMarriott International said late lastnight it booked a $126m (£103.8m)charge in the latest quarter tied to amassive data breach disclosed last year,and lowered financial projections forthe year.

FINANCIAL TIMES THE TIMES THE DAILY TELEGRAPH THE WALL STREET JOURNALWHAT THEOTHERPAPERS SAYTHISMORNING

JOHNSON TO DEFY ANY VOTEOF NO CONFIDENCE Boris Johnson would refuse to resigneven after losing a confidence vote sohe could force through a no-deal Brexiton 31 October, under plans beingconsidered by Downing Street.

CUMMINGS ACCUSES PHILIPHAMMOND OVER NO-DEAL Dominic Cummings has clashed withPhilip Hammond after accusing him ofattempting to block no-dealpreparations while he was chancellor.Boris Johnson’s most senior aide isunderstood to have accused Hammondand Greg Clark, the former businesssecretary, of frustrating plans for no-deal during a meeting with advisers.

ALEX DANIEL

@alexmdanielHSBC has axed thousands of jobs andsacked its chief executive, in an abruptabout-turn at Europe’s biggest bankyesterday.

Less than an hour after boss JohnFlint fell victim to a top-level reshuffleafter 18 months in the job, chief finan-cial officer Ewen Stevenson said asmany as 4,700 people could join himin being made redundant. The highstreet lender hopes to trim long-termcosts by reducing its global salary billby four per cent.

A spokesperson declined to commenton whether any of the bank’s 42,000UK workers, 18 per cent of HSBC’s237,000-strong total employees, wouldbe laid off.

The announcements come despitesolid half-year results. Pre-tax profitrose to $12.4bn (£10.2bn) for the first

HSBC top dog dumped asbank culls 4,700 job roles

TWO BRITISH aviators are set to take a classic Second World War Supermarine Spitfire on tour, reaching 30 countries andcovering more than 43,000 kilometres on their round-the-world journey. The first leg of the trip started yesterday and willtake Matt Jones and Steve Boultbee Brooks to Iceland, Canada and the US. Engineers stripped the WWII fighter, which wasbuilt in 1943, of its weapons and peeled back its paint to reveal the shiny metal underneath.

Boris has his work cutout on regional growthFOR THE populist left-wing, typified by Jeremy Corbyn,

there are few problems that can’t be solved by taxing therich. But who exactly are they? A new report by theInstitute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) sheds some light on this

much-maligned demographic. To be in the top 10 per cent ofincome tax payers you need to earn a little over £50,000. To be inthe top one per cent you need to bring home three times that,while the top 0.1 per cent earn more than £650,000 before tax.The disparity is enormous. It is, as they say, the differencebetween the haves and the have-yachts. But the findings areclear on one point: the UK’s top earners are predominantlymale, middle-aged and living in London or the south east. Asidefrom the glaring gender disparity, the figures lay bare thecountry’s geographical imbalance. Boris Johnson has been keento trumpet his credentials as a One Nation Tory, pledging tounlock the UK’s potential beyond the border of the M25. Buthow will this work when high productivity and top earners areconcentrated, by and large,in one corner of thecountry? This is thechallenge for policy-makers.Should we increase the taxburden on top earners andhope that Whitehall cansuccessfully redistribute it? Or should we invest in andincentivise growth and innovation in the regions? Johnson, tohis credit, favours the latter approach. The £1.8bn NHS cashboost, along with regional infrastructure spending and an aimto roll out full-fibre broadband by 2025, demonstrate – intheory, at least – his commitment to life outside London. AsBrexit reverberates through British politics, the north-southdivide is even more acute, and there’s no doubt the PrimeMinister has northern Leave voters in mind when he makes hispromises. But the IFS figures show just how important conceptssuch as the Northern Powerhouse could be for harnessing thecountry’s potential after we leave the EU. Regional connectivity,infrastructure investment and greater devolution could all, intime, reduce our reliance on London’s top earners. PaulJohnson, director of the IFS, also warned of the perniciouseffects of fiscal drag, where tax thresholds swallow earners forwhom the 40p rate was never intended. Johnson should act totackle this, alongside his plans for regional growth.

Follow us on Twitter @cityam

THE CITY VIEW

It is the differencebetween the havesand the have-yachts

Seen as a safe pair of hands, John Flint’sappointment as HSBC chief was the firstmajor decision taken by chair MarkTucker last February. Just 18 monthslater he’s out “by mutual agreement”.It’s thought a breakdown of relationsbetween the two may be behind theabrupt decision. The two reportedlydisagreed over how to turn around thebank’s waning US business. Othersnoted the board’s dissatisfaction withthe speed of reform under Flint’s watch.With the US and China embroiled in adamaging trade war, City analystsagreed that a more decisive action maybe necessary to boost returns. With4,700 job roles set to go, that may bealready underway. Too little, too late tosave Flint, whose slow and steadystrategy seems to have sealed his fate.

BOTTOM LINEsix months of the year, a 16 per centimprovement from 2018. Revenue wasup eight per cent at $29.4bn.

The firm said yesterday it needed achange at the helm to deal with a“challenging global environment”.Flint is stepping down “by mutualagreement”.

London-headquartered HSBC, whichmakes more than 80 per cent of itsprofit in Asia, said that its global com-mercial banking unit head Noel Quinnwill be interim chief executive. Theboard will consider external candi-dates for the role.

In its lacklustre US division, HSBC admitted it was unlikely to meet its sixper cent return on average tangible equity target by 2020. This was in partbecause of falling interest rates in theUS, and “geopolitical issues” which“could impact a significant number ofour major markets”.

Shares closed down three per cent.

AROUND THE WORLD IN 126 DAYS Spitfire pilots set off onepic trip for first round-the-world journey in classic WWII plane

03TUESDAY 6 AUGUST 2019 NEWSCITYAM.COM

CATHERINE NEILAN

@CatNeilanA HALLOWEEN Brexit will take place“whatever the circumstances”,Downing Street insisted yesterday, asrebel MPs up the rhetoric aboutblocking the process through a voteof no confidence. .

“The UK will be leaving the EU onOctober 31, whatever thecircumstances. There are no ifs orbuts,” the Prime Minister’s official

spokesman told journalists. “We must restore trust in our

democracy and fulfil the repeatedpromises of parliament to the peopleby coming out of the EU on 31October. Politicians cannot choosewhich votes to respect. They promisedto respect the referendum result. Wemust do so.”

The spokesman deflected questionsabout what might happen in theevent of a confidence vote, or ifparliament voted against no deal, as

threats to derail Johnson’s promise ofBrexit “do or die” ratchet up.

Former Conservative leader IainDuncan Smith told City A.M.: “If wedon’t leave, there will be ademocratic crisis, but there is rapidlybecoming a hardcore of people whowon’t accept anything… There aresome people who will never acceptthe result of the referendum.”

He slammed would-be rebels as“conniving remainers” who sought to“create problems” in the Commons.

JESS CLARK

@jclarkjournoLAST month was the worst July onrecord for retail sales growth, accord-ing to new data, in the latest blow forthe struggling industry.

Total sales growth was 0.3 per centin July – compared to an increase of1.6 per cent last year – the lowest levelrecorded for the month since recordsbegan in 1995.

The slump was driven by falling retail sales at bricks and mortarstores, not including food purchases,which declined four per cent on alike-for-like basis in the three monthsto the end of July.

Helen Dickinson, British Retail Con-sortium chief executive, said: “Thechallenging retail environment is tak-ing its toll on many high street brandswho must contend with rising importcosts, a multitude of public policycosts, and ever higher business rates.

“A coherent strategy for retail is

needed. The government shouldfreeze future business rates rises andfix the appeals system before embark-ing on a wholesale reform of this broken tax system.”

Online retailers also struggled during the month as non-food salesgrowth slumped from 7.5 per cent inJuly 2018 to 3.7 per cent last month,according to the latest data from theBritish Retail Consortium (BRC) andKPMG published today.

Meanwhile data from Barclaycardshowed that consumer spending indepartment stores contracted by 3.9per cent last month.

Sales in leisure items such as cin-ema tickets and meals out, whichgrew 14.8 per cent and 10.1 per centrespectively, helped boost overallspending.

However, total spending growth forthe month was just 1.7 per cent, following consumer spending growthof 1.1 per cent and 0.9 per cent in Mayand June respectively.

Retail growthdragged downby in-store sales

Privacy regulators worriedby Facebook’s crypto planAUGUST GRAHAM

@AugustGrahamTHE UK information commissionerhas joined global regulators voicingworries over Facebook’s plans tolaunch its own cryptocurrency.

Elizabeth Denham said she was“concerned” over the lack of detail onhow Facebook and its partners willhandle personal information.

“There is the potential to combineFacebook’s vast reserves of personalinformation with financial informa-

tion and cryptocurrency, amplifyingprivacy concerns about the network’sdesign and data sharing arrange-ments,” Denham said.

In a joint statement she joined reg-ulators from Canada, the EU and theUS to demand answers from the com-pany. They referenced the social net-work’s past failures on privacy.

Last month ministers from the G7pushed back against Facebook’s plans.They fear tech giants are getting tooinvolved in areas usually reserved forgovernments.

Tesco slashes thousands of jobsacross its entire Metro networkAUGUST GRAHAM AND JESS CLARK

@AugustGraham @jclarkjournoTESCO is set to slash around 4,500jobs across all of its 153 Metrostores as it battles with toughtrading conditions.

The cutbacks will reduceprocesses and administrative tasksacross the stores, it said.

It comes after the companydiscovered 70 per cent of

customers use Metro stores –which were designed for theweekly shop – for daily purchases.

The changes mean each store willcarry fewer items in the stockroom,and start filling shelves in fasterand simpler ways. Staff will have towork flexibly across the store tofocus resources. It also promised a“leaner management structure”.

Shopworkers’ union Usdawcalled on the government to“tackle the crisis in retail”.

Brexit deadline must be met ‘whateverthe consequences,’ insists Number 10

THE FORMER head of VirginMoney, Dame Jayne-AnneGadhia, is set to make acomeback as Salesforceprepares to announce her as itsnext chief executive for the UKand Ireland. Sky News reportedlast night that the New-Yorklisted company will appointGadhia from October. The firmhas said it will invest $2.5bn(£2.1bn) in UK operations.

BACK IN FORCEFormer VirginMoney boss tippedfor Salesforce chief

HEATHROW STRIKEDELAYED FOR SECOND DAYThe 24-hour strike that was due toforce Heathrow into shutdowntoday has been called off. The unionUnite had been engaged in talkswith senior Heathrow personnelabout averting the strike of morethan 4,000 workers, includingsecurity guards, firefighters andengineers.

UK JOINS US EFFORT TOPROTECT SHIPS IN GULFBritain plans to work with the US toensure the safety of commercialships passing through the Strait ofHormuz and the Persian Gulf fromIranian attack, defence secretaryBen Wallace said yesterday amidescalating tensions in the region.However the UK will not join USsanctions against Iran, Wallace saidafter US President Donald Trumpripped up a nuclear deal with thecountry last year. Foreign secretaryDominic Raab said that the UK’sapproach to Iran has not changed.

RAAB CROSSES POND ASBREXIT DEADLINE LOOMSForeign secretary Dominic Raab isset to visit the US, Canada andMexico this week as he seeksopportunities for the UK after Brexit.Between the three countries, theyrepresent £225bn in annual tradewith the UK. The foreign secretarysaid he wanted to “fire up economicrelationships with non-Europeanpartners”. Raab returned fromThailand last week where he met 20foreign ministers from across theAsia-Pacific region.

IN BRIEF

This information is correct as of August 2019 and is relevant to Halifax products and services only. Halifax is a division of Bank of Scotland plc. Registered in Scotland No. SC327000. Registered Office: The Mound, Edinburgh EH1 1YZ. Bank of Scotland plc is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority under registration number 169628.

Halifax makes it happen.

Moving home? See how much you

could borrow. Easy.

Your home may be repossessed if you don’t keep up repayments on your mortgage

05TUESDAY 6 AUGUST 2019 NEWSCITYAM.COM

HARRY ROBERTSON

@henrygrobertsonACTIVITY in the UK services sectoredged up to a nine-month high inJuly, a closely-watched survey showedyesterday, but stayed well below thepost-financial crisis average.

Growth in services, which makes upover 70 per cent of the UK economy,helped GDP expand last month de-spite falling output in both manufac-turing and construction.

The services purchasing managers’index (PMI) rose to 51.4 in July, upfrom 50.2 in June and above the 50 no-change mark for the fourth month ina row, data provider IHS Markit andthe Chartered Institute of Procure-ment and Supply (Cips) said yesterday.

IHS Markit’s gauge of the overallhealth of the economy rose to 50.3 inJuly, only just escaping contraction.

“The overall picture is one of aneconomy that is only just managingto skirt recession,” said ChrisWilliamson, chief business economistat IHS Markit.

He said July’s performance was

Services sectorhelps stalling UKeconomy in July

“among the worst since the height ofthe global financial crisis in 2009”.

The UK economy has slowed in re-cent months as business investmentand manufacturing have sufferedunder Brexit uncertainty and a globalslowdown. The Bank of England pre-dicted last week that growth stag-nated in the second quarter.

Household spending, driven by lowunemployment and rising wages, haspropped up the economy.

The increased services business ac-tivity in July was driven by a solid re-bound of new work, with a number ofsurvey respondents saying the weakpound helped them sell more toclients abroad.

However widespread reports resur-faced that domestic political uncer-tainty held back decision making byclients, particularly large companies.

“Even growth in the service sectorremains worryingly subdued,” saidWilliamson. “The best performingsector was consumer services, high-lighting how the economy remainsdependent on consumer spending toavoid contraction.”

Ad industry urges Prime Ministerto ditch junk food ban proposalJAMES WARRINGTON

@j_a_warringtonTHE ADVERTISING industry hasurged Prime Minister Boris Johnsonto rethink “onerous” restrictions onads for unhealthy food amid concernsover the economic impact.

In a letter to Johnson, theAdvertising Association (AA) said thatwhile it supported the government’sambition to reduce childhood obesityby 2050, plans to crack down onadverts would not achieve that aim.

Under the proposals, advertisers

will face a 9pm watershed whenpromoting products high in fat, saltor sugar on TV and online.

The AA warned the move wouldhave “severe impacts” on mediarevenue and the wider supply chain.

In addition, the industry body hasargued that an ad ban would do littleto address the fundamental causes ofchildhood obesity.

The AA cited government analysisin its letter to Johnson, which showedthe proposed restrictions would onlyremove around 1.7 calories per dayfrom children’s diets.

Manufacturing malaise drags downeuro area as investor gloom growsHARRY ROBERTSON

@henrygrobertsonGROWTH in the Eurozone economysoftened in July as German outputfell to a six-year low, a closely-watchedsurvey showed yesterday.

The area’s manufacturing sectorcontinued to struggle but theservices sector posted solid growthin July as employment grew and payrose, highlighting a divide in the

Eurozone economy.The purchasing managers’ index

(PMI) composite output index, agauge of the health of the overalleconomy from data provider IHSMarkit, fell to 51.5 in July. This wasdown from June’s 52.2 and showedonly modest growth in the zone’seconomy.

Germany’s composite PMI fell to a73-month low in March as itseconomy continued to grapple with

trade tensions and a globalslowdown.

Meanwhile, Eurozone investorswere at their gloomiest sinceOctober 2014 this month, accordingto a survey from finance data firmSentix, which called a Germanrecession “inevitable”.

Sentix’s economic index ofinvestor confidence fell 7.9 points tominus 13.7, significantly belowexpectations.

BORIS Johnson has insisted his £1.8bn cash injection for NHS hospitals is “newmoney”, amid claims that the cash had already been earmarked. The PM yesterdayunveiled an £850m boost for 20 hospitals, alongside a £1bn uplift in capital spending.

NEW MONEY Boris Johnson denies usingold Treasury cash for £1.8bn NHS boost

CITYAM.COM06 TUESDAY 6 AUGUST 2019NEWS

JESS CLARK

@jclarkjournoLONDON’s prime property marketmade a slight recovery in the secondquarter of this year, with prices edg-ing 3.1 per cent higher than at theend of 2018.

Property prices returned to levelslast seen 12 months ago, indicatingthat the bottom of the market mayhave been reached.

Sales activity picked up 21.4 per centup on the previous quarter.

However, some sellers are being putoff by lower prices, which are stilldown considerably compared to theheight of the market.

The number of prime properties onthe open market is down 12.5 per centon last year, according to the latestLondon Prime Property Index by private bank Coutts.

The number of property listings inKensington, Notting Hill and HollandPark is 25 per cent lower than oneyear ago.

A lack of housing stock in desirableareas could also be presenting hurdles for would-be buyers.

Prime propertyprices in Londonedge upwards

So-called Gazumping – where a sec-ond higher offer is accepted after aninitial bid has been approved – is onthe rise as competition ramps upamong buyers with fewer homes tochoose from.

However, the lack of supply is alsocontributing to the increase in pricesseen over the last quarter.

Sales were concentrated in Mayfairand St James’s, which saw the biggestprice rise of 4.1 per cent, reflectingthe appeal of the central location andthe fact that the lack of stock to meetdemand is driving up prices.

Demand for family homes in outer-London prime areas such as Hamp-stead and Wimbledon has alsoremained strong.

Less than a third of homes in thoseareas are selling at a discount to ask-ing price, compared to 47 per cent onaverage across the capital.

Alex Midha, a senior private bankerat Coutts, said: “Managing the trans-action is very important to ensure allparties are speaking to each other reg-ularly and that the vendor and ven-dor’s agent are confident that thebuyer is credible and proceedable.”

Stelios urges investors to rejectIcamap’s £139m Easyhotel dealJOE CURTIS

@joe_r_curtisEASYHOTEL founder Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou has called onshareholders to reject a £139m bidfor the business, saying it fails torecognise the company’s “truevalue”.

Real estate fund Icamap made the95p per share bid for the hotel chainyesterday alongside developerIvanhoe Cambridge.

Haji-Ioannou, who remains a 27per cent shareholder via his

Easygroup investment firm, said theoffer is “very low”.

“I urge all other shareholders totake no action until the true valueand future potential of Easyhotelcan be evaluated,” he said.

Icamap’s offer represents a 34.8per cent premium to last week’sclose of 70.5p per share. Haji-Ioannou said the share price hasbeen much higher in recent years.

“It should be noted Icamapthemselves paid 110p only 18months ago and the stock has beenas high as 128p just 15 months ago.”

Cuadrilla to bid for permission tocontinue fracking at Lancashire siteAUGUST GRAHAM

@AugustGrahamCUADRILLA will apply for permissionto continue work at the UK’s mostadvanced fracking site as it seeks away forward, despite regulation itclaimed is stifling the industry.

Chief executive Francis Egan willask Lancashire County Council to letthe firm continue for another 18months on top of the current period.

Its permission at Preston NewRoad is set to run out at the end ofNovember, after 30 months.

However, Egan said, the firm willonly have drilled or fracked at thesite for 21 of those months.

The extra time would giveCuadrilla the chance to open twomore wells on top of the two it hasalready drilled. It has permissionalready, but did not have the time,the company said.

It comes as the Oil and GasAuthority yesterday approvedCuadrilla’s plans to start fracking atits second well.

Shale gas proponents have pointedto British gas as a less carbonintensive way of meeting the UK’sgas needs. However, protesters worrythat fracking can cause earthquakes,and contaminate groundwater.

Regulations force work to stop iftremors hit 0.5 on the Richter scale.

DIGITAL challenger bank Monzo urged users to change their PINs yesterday afteradmitting a data breach allowed members of staff to access security information.Around a fifth of customers were affected by the leak, which has now been resolved.

FINTECH LEAK Monzo asks a fifth of itsusers to change PINs after security bug

07TUESDAY 6 AUGUST 2019 NEWSCITYAM.COM

JAMES BOOTH

@Jamesdbooth1FINANCIAL services staff with poorconduct records are still able tomove to new firms, despite effortsto improve conduct in the sector,the City watchdog said yesterday.

A review by the FinancialConduct Authority (FCA) foundthat “rolling bad apples” continuedto be an issue, despite toughernew regulations.

The FCA’s senior managersregime, introduced in 2016, aimedto clean up the finance sector afterbanks were fined billions ofpounds for trying to rig interestrate benchmarks and currencies.

The regime aims to make seniorstaff at finance firms directlyaccountable for their actions.

In its review of the regime, theFCA found “the majority felt thatthe industry had some way to go toimprove the quality and timelinessof references. Another challengefor firms is that other firms are notalways consistent in recordingbreaches of the conduct rules.”

The FCA said the researchshowed there was now “a strongertone and ownership from the top”.

The watchdog said measuringcultural changes was still difficult.

JAMES BOOTH

@Jamesdbooth1THE VICE president of the Law Societyis set to face a disciplinary tribunalthis month over claims of dishonesty.

David Greene, who acted for aclaimant in the Article 50 litigationin 2016, is set to appear before theSolicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT)on 13 August.

The claim centres around £7,000in unpaid fees his firm Edwin Coe

alleged it is owed by a former client,David Davies.

Davies argued that his formercompany Eco Power instructedEdwin Coe, and that he was neverpersonally a client of the firm.

He also alleged that Greene wasdishonest in previous hearings onthe matter, misleading the court inhis evidence to claim Davies waspersonally a client of the firm.

Greene said: “This complaint hasno substance as the courts and the

SRA [Solicitors Regulation Authority]have concluded on several occasions.We are applying to strike it out as an abuse.”

Greene, who is set to becomepresident of the Law Society nextyear, advised Deir Dos Santos on his2016 challenge to the government’spower to trigger Article 50 withoutparliamentary approval.

A spokesperson for the Law Societysaid: “It would be inappropriate forus to comment.”

ANNA MENIN

@annafmeninPRIVATE equity investment in the UKhas fallen to its lowest level in overfive years, as continued economic andgeopolitical uncertainty has left vendors too nervous to put assets upfor sale.

A study of UK transactions involvingprivate equity investors during thefirst half of the year showed that bothdeal volumes and deal value havedropped below 2014 levels.

The research, by auditor KPMG,found that 384 deals were completedbetween January and June 2019, witha combined value of £28.5bn. Thiscompares to 483 completed deals totalling £31.5bn during the first halfof 2014.

This year’s figures also representeda significant decline compared to thesame period in 2018, with deal vol-umes down 35 per cent from 594 to483, and deal values down 40 per cent

from £47bn to £31.5bn. The number of first-half deals

involving private equity in the UK’smiddle market also fell dramatically,from 273 in 2018 to 199 in the firsthalf of this year.

However, the total value of thesedeals increased, bucking thedownward trend seen elsewhere inthe market.

Jonathan Boyers, head of mergersand acquisitions at KPMG, said: “Investors are currently eschewingthose higher-risk transactions thatthey may have been willing to under-take a couple of years ago.”

Uncertainty over Brexit is continu-ing to shape both investor and vendorbehaviour, he added.

“However, once the Brexit conun-drum is resolved, we may see a flurryof asset sales, investment activity anddeal making as both sellers and buyers look to make up ground following this lengthy period of uncertainty,” Boyers said.

Private equityinvestments hitfive-year low

SVS Securities braced forprobe as broker goes bustJAMES WARRINGTON

@j_a_warringtonSTOCKBROKER SVS Securities has col-lapsed into administration and willface a regulatory investigation amid“serious concerns” about its business.

Administrators at Leonard Curtishave been appointed to take controlof the City-based broker and are exploring options including a sale,the Financial Conduct Authority(FCA) said in a statement.

It comes after the FCA placed a ban

on SVS conducting regulated activi-ties and restricted it from disposing ofits own or its clients’ assets.

The regulator said it has alsolaunched a probe into the broker overunspecified concerns about the way ithad invested clients’ money.

“Acting on intelligence receivedabout the assets in which SVS investedits clients’ money, we conducted urgent supervisory work and identi-fied serious concerns about the wayin which the business was operating,”the FCA said.

Neil Woodford’s Equity Income fund was first suspended on 3 June

Calls for warnings over risks ofWoodford-style suspensions ANNA MENIN

@annafmeninINVESTORS should be given clearerwarnings about the risks of fundsuspensions, the head of an industrybody has said.

Ian Sayers, from the Association ofInvestment Companies (AIC) haschallenged statements made by thehead of the Financial ConductAuthority (FCA) about informationgiven to investors in Neil Woodford’ssuspended Equity Income Fund.

In evidence given to the TreasurySelect Committee (TSC), AndrewBailey, who leads the FCA, had saidthat the possibility of suspensionwas “very clearly set out” in investormaterials.

In a letter to the TSC sent earlierthis month and released yesterday,Sayers said he disagreed this was “afair warning to investors”.

Responding to the letter, an FCAspokesperson said the regulator“[does] not agree with the AIC’sinterpretation”.

‘Rolling badapples’ remainproblem in City

Top Article 50 lawyer facing disciplinarytribunal over dishonesty allegations

CITYAM.COM08 TUESDAY 6 AUGUST 2019NEWS

ALEX DANIEL

@alexmdanielNEW CAR sales were hampered lastmonth by confusion over Brexit un-certainty, despite a spike in transac-tions involving pure electric vehicles.

Britain’s new car market shrunk 4.1per cent in July, its fifth straightmonth of decline, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers andTraders (SMMT).

Just 157,198 cars were registered overthe course of the month. Orders frombusiness customers fell 22.5 per cent,while two per cent fewer sales to indi-viduals took place.

Diesel cars increasingly look set tobecome a thing of the past in the com-ing years due to strict regulationacross Europe. Sales fell 22.1 per cent,their 28th straight monthly decline

Plug-in hybrid electric car salesnearly halved, on the back of the government’s decision to cut certain subsidies for people buying them.

British car salessplutter despiteelectric surge

Historic shipyard Harland and Wolff built the Titanic between 1909 and 1911

Titanic shipyard Harland andWolff sinks into administrationANNA MENIN

@annafmeninHISTORIC Belfast shipyard Harlandand Wolff is expected to fileadministration papers today, putting130 jobs at risk.

The company’s owner, Norwegianfirm Dolphin Drilling, had filed forbankruptcy in June and put the yardup for sale, but no buyer has beenfound.

The shipyard, which built theTitanic between 1909 and 1911,traces its history back to 1861.

It has struggled in the face of stiffcompetition from abroad, and madea loss of £5.8m in 2016 – the last yearfor which it filed accounts.

Harland and Wolff’s 130 staff havebeen given redundancy notices. BDOwas appointed as administratorsyesterday afternoon, though thefirm has yet to file formally.

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However, a ray of light for the car industry was a sharp spike in demandfor pure electric cars, which almosttripled to take a record in monthlymarket share.

Forecasts by the SMMT predictedelectric cars’ share of the marketcould double over the course of 2020.The trade body expects people willbuy more than 51,000 of the vehiclesnext year, around two per cent of thetotal market.

SMMT chief Mike Hawes said: “De-spite yet another month of decline inthe new car market, it’s encouragingto see substantial growth in zeroemission vehicles. Thanks to manu-facturers’ investment in these newtechnologies over many years, thesecars are coming to market in greaternumbers than ever before. If the UK isto meet its environmental ambitions,however, government must create theright conditions to drive uptake, including long-term incentives and investment in infrastructure.”

BBA Aviationprofit declinesamid strugglesALEX DANIEL

@alexmdanielAEROSPACE services firmBBA Aviation’s share price fellyesterday as it announced a slight de-terioration in first-half profit.

The firm, which provides theglobal aviation industry withfuelling, ground handling andpassenger services, said a coolingsector was partly to blame for thelacklustre results.

Shares fell as much as three percent yesterday. BBA’s pre-tax profitfell to £150.2m in the first half of2019, a two per cent year-on-yeardrop, while revenue increased 19per cent to £1.53bn.

Free cash flow was £129m at theend of June, a 13 per cent increase,while net debt grew seven per centto £1.34bn.

Revenue at its Signature unit,which makes up about four-fifths ofthe overall business, increased 23.3per cent. Private equity firm Ontic’srevenue grew 28.2 per cent.

BBA’s completed sale of Ontic toCVC Capital Partners followed hoton the heels of fellow aviationsupplier Cobham agreeing ablockbuster £4bn takeover by a USprivate equity firm.

1.14%

CITYAM.COM 09TUESDAY 6 AUGUST 2019 NEWS

ANNA MENIN

@annafmeninQUILTER plans to sell itslife assurance business torival Reassure for £425m as it tries tostreamline its operations.

The FTSE 250-listed asset manager,formerly known as Old MutualWealth Management, hopes tocomplete the deal later this year,subject to regulatory approval.

Yesterday’s announcement came asQuilter reported a first-half operatingloss of £40m, but said adjusted pre-tax profit rose five per cent to £115m.

Assets under management andadministration at Quilter rose eightper cent during the first half of theyear to £118.4bn.

Quilter Life Assurance made up£26m of Quilter’s profit, down from£27m for the same period last year.

In a statement released with theresults, Quilter chief executive Paul

JOHN REVILL

THE SWISS National Bank (SNB) appeared to be buying foreign currency again last week as escalatingtrade tensions pushed the value of thesafe-haven Swiss franc higher againstthe euro.

Sight deposits, a proxy for the cen-tral bank’s currency interventions,rose by SFr1.6bn (£1.4bn) toSFr582.7bn last week, according todata published yesterday.

The increase, following a SFr1.7bnrise the week before, seemed to showthe SNB had continued its foreign cur-rency purchases to stabilise the franc,analysts said.

Feeney called the figures “solid”, andsaid the firm’s board planned toreturn a “meaningful” proportion ofthe sale’s profits to investors.

“I am delighted we have agreed tosell Quilter Life Assurance toReassure. Reassure is a highlyregarded manager of closed bookassets and has the experience todeliver continued high qualityinvestment and administrationservices to clients of Quilter LifeAssurance,” he said yesterday.

“We are focused on making Quiltera simpler, more efficient wealthmanagement business, and theannouncement today of the sale ofQuilter Life Assurance is a furthersignificant step forward in thisregard,” he added.

Feeney said that gross newbusiness sales have “held up well at£6bn” in the UK’s “uncertain political environment”.

Shares closed down just over two

per cent – a fairly neutralperformance amid widespread fallsacross the stock exchange duringyesterday’s Brexit and trade war-tinged trading.

Reassure’s owner Swiss Re said theacquisition will add over 200,000policies and £12bn of assets to thefirm, which scrapped plans for a£3bn float last month.

In June Quilter completed theacquisition of national advice firmand network Lighthouse for £46.2m,adding 390 advisers to its business.

Earlier this year in February, itbought financial planning businessCharles Derby.

Quilter said a delay to theconstruction of its new UK platformwould incur additional costs to thebusiness of around £25m, on top ofthe £160m already allocated.

The firm said these costs willaccount for incremental call centrecapacity and technical support.

JAMES WARRINGTON

@j_a_warringtonFACEBOOK is failing to crack downon a “thriving” marketplace of fakereviews on its website, despitebeing told by regulators to tacklethe problem, a new investigationhas revealed.

Consumer group Which founddozens of groups on the socialmedia site that recruit people towrite fake reviews on e-commercesites such as Amazon in exchangefor free products.

The Competition and MarketsAuthority (CMA) issued a warningin June to both Facebook and Ebay,

urging them to clamp down on theburgeoning marketplace for fakeand misleading online reviews.

But the continued presence ofdozens of these groups onFacebook will spark concernsabout the effectiveness of thesocial media site’s response.

Which called on the CMA to takeaction against Facebook over itsfailure to remove the groups.

A Facebook spokesperson said:“We don’t allow people to useFacebook to facilitate or encouragefalse reviews. We have removednine of the 10 groups reported tous and are investigating theremaining group.”

Quilter to offload its lifeassurance arm for £425m

Facebook slammed over failureto crack down on fake reviews

Switzerland’s centralbank hikes currencybuying to tame franc

JUST Eat and former rival Takeaway.com have agreed the terms of a $10bn (£8.3bn) merger, valuing the former’s shares at 731p.However, that figure falls below the 736p figure shares hit at the close of London Stock Exchange trading last Friday, raising thepossibility that a rival bidder could yet emerge. The boards of both companies yesterday confirmed their support for the deal.

SUPERSIZE ME Just Eat shares undervalued as it agrees termson £8.3bn mega-merger with Dutch delivery firm Takeaway.com

2.11%

INTERACTIVE INVESTOR TALK

CITY TALK PARTNER CONTENT

Dzmitry Lipski, discusses ethicalinvesting and looks at the aims of the Rathbone Ethical Bond fund

WHAT'S IN IT?The fund will invest in at least 80%investment grade bonds, with the other20% in high-yield and unrated, howeverthis is usually at a minimum. It isbenchmark agnostic and well diversifiedwith over 200 holdings.

The fund does not invest in gilts, as theydo not pass the ethical screen – meaningthe fund may lag when gilts outperform.

The sector exposure of the fund is drivenby themes leading to banks and insurancebonds making up over two-thirds of theportfolio.

The social housing sector accounts for8.7% of the fund and is where the team finda lot of opportunities, as the companies areusually well managed with strong creditratings and environmental, social, andgovernance (ESG) ratings.

HOW DOES IT PERFORM?The fund has been one of the best performersin the IA Sterling Corporate Bond sector. It alsohas a higher income target than most of itspeers and currently yields 4.4%.

II VIEWRathbone Ethical Bond Fund features in theii Super 60 list of high-conviction active andpassive funds as a Global BondsAdventurous recommendation. Managedby highly experienced managers, the fundprovides exposure to high-quality,investment-grade credit with ethicalcriteria. It has a higher income target thanmost of its peers while still taking anaverage level of risk.

However, the flexible and unconstrainednature of the portfolio means its returnscan deviate from the index and peers. Inaddition to combining a good level ofincome with ethics, the fund can offerinvestors the benefits of diversificationaway from their equities allocation in awell-diversified portfolio.

£Dzmitry Lipski is an investment analyst atinteractive investor. This article is providedfor information purposes only and is notintended to be a personal recommendationto adopt any investment strategy.

READ MORE ONLINE

Read more at:cityam.com/talk/interactive-investor

Traditionally, ethical investing meantbuying stocks of companies that arenot involved in alcohol, tobacco,

armaments or gambling, or investing inbusinesses that helped the environment orsupported positive social causes.

But lately, the idea has spread to bonds,and a growing segment of the fixed incomeuniverse are so-called green, climate orsocial bonds, which reflect the increasingimportance being placed on environmentaland social sustainability.

These bonds are used by companies for aspecific social or environmental purposesuch as initiatives for clean water orrenewable energy, community investmentand employee welfare. Such bonds provideinvestors not only with income but alsowith the satisfaction of knowing that theproceeds of their investment will be usedfor a positive cause.

THE FUNDRathbone Ethical Bond fund aims toprovide a regular, above-average income byinvesting in a range of sterling-denominated bonds with strict ethicalcriteria. The managers predominantlyinvest in investment-grade bonds using anapproach that considers economic andpolitical trends, company analysis andthematic ideas.

When assessing which companies' bondsto buy, the managers use their 'four Cs plus'process to help them make selections. Thisincludes: Character - management's abilityto react to events; Capacity - sources ofliquidity and cash-flow analysis; Collateral -assets that are pledged and, lastly,Covenants. The 'plus' is Conviction — toachieve long term, above averageperformance, investors must thinkdifferently to the market.

After applying these techniques, themanagers look at the opportunity set froma valuation perspective to identify assetswhich they believe to be undervalued.

Following this, Rathbone Greenbank, thecompany's separate ethical investmentunit, then applies an ethical overlayconsisting of a negative screen and then apositive screen. Rathbone Greenbank havea veto right on any investment put forwardby the credit team.

As a result, the fund will avoid bondissuers involved in armaments,environmentally unsustainable activities,animal testing, tobacco, nuclear power,alcohol, pornography, gambling andpredatory lending.

In addition, all positions must have atleast one positive environmental, social orcorporate governance quality.

FUND SPOTLIGHT: RATHBONEETHICAL BOND FUND

Reuters

CITYAM.COM10 TUESDAY 6 AUGUST 2019NEWS

JAMES BOOTH

@Jamesdbooth1DIALIGHT shares fell yesterday on therelease of its “disappointing” half-yearresults and the exit of its chairman.

The LED lighting company posted a£1.6m loss for the first half of 2019,down from a profit of £2m for thesame period the previous year.

Revenue fell to £76.1m, down twoper cent on the first half of 2018.

The firm said its net debt positionstood at £11m, compared to a netcash position of £7.3m in the firsthalf of 2018.

Shares fell 5.1 per cent to 370p,after making gains last Friday.

Marty Rapp, group chief executive,said: “Lighting revenues wereimpacted by some softening of endmarkets and delayed market sharerecovery.”

The company also said yesterdaythat its chairman Wayne Edmunds is

stepping down, having taken up therole in January 2016.

He is being replaced by non-executive director David Blood withimmediate effect.

The exit of the chairman comesafter Rapp announced last monththat he is to step down as chiefexecutive this month, with financechief Fariyal Khanbabi taking thereins as interim boss while the firmhunts for a permanent successor.

Dialight sharesfall on chair exitand poor results

Other retailers have already stopped selling HTC handsets

HTC pulls phones from UK shopsAUGUST GRAHAM

@AugustGrahamTAIWANESE phone maker HTC haspulled its handsets from shelves inthe UK as it deals with the falloutfrom an intellectual property dispute.

All phones on the UK version ofHTC’s website were yesterday listedas “out of stock”.

They were still available to buy onits US website.

The firm is locked in a copyrightdispute with German research anddevelopment company Ipcom.

The two are arguing about awireless technology developed forcar phones.

City A.M. could not reach HTC forcomment last night.

It told the BBC, which firstreported this story: “As a leadinginnovator, HTC takes intellectualproperty issues very seriously.

“We are proactively investigatingan infringement claim by a thirdparty with respect to a singlehandset model.”

Some of the phones are stillavailable through Amazon.

Google turns torecycled plasticin green drivePARESH DAVE

ALPHABET’s Google yesterdayannounced that it would neutralisecarbon emissions from deliveringconsumer hardware by next yearand include recycled plastic in eachof its products by 2022.

The new commitments step upthe competition among techcompanies aiming to showconsumers and governments thatthey are curbing the environmentaltoll from their gadgets.

Anna Meegan, head ofsustainability for Google’s devicesand services unit, said the firm’stransport-related carbon emissionsper unit fell 40 per cent last yearcompared to 2017 by relying moreon ships instead of planes to movephones, speakers, laptops andother gadgets from factories tocustomers across the world.

The company will offsetremaining emissions by purchasingcarbon credits, Meegan said.

Three out of nine products forwhich Google has detaileddisclosures online contain recycledplastic, ranging from 20 per cent to42 per cent.

CITY OF LONDONTHE PLANNING ACTS AND THE ORDERS AND REGULATIONS MADE THEREUNDERThis notice gives details of applications registered by the Department of The Built Environment Code: FULL/FULMAJ/FULEIA/FULLR3 – Planning Permission; LBC – Listed Building Consent; TPO – Tree Preservation Order; OUTL – Outline Planning Permission

10 Bolt Court, London, EC4A 3DQ19/00291/FULLReplacement of the existing balustrading, installation of new decking and planting at roof level in association with the formation of a roof terrace for use by occupants of the building between 9am and 8pm with the exception of 15 times a year when this would be extended to 11pm. (Amended Description, revised drawings and supplementary information).

11 Gough Square, London, EC4A 3DE19/00630/FULLReplacement of principle entrance doors and side panels.

130 Fenchurch Street, London, EC3M 5DJ19/00713/FULMAJApplication under Section 73 of the Town and Country Planning Act to vary condition 38 (approved plans) of planning permission dated 29th March 2019 (16/00809/FULMAJ) to enable minor material amendments to the include: (i) revised facades to provide an alternative glazing solution including associated external changes; (ii) minor alterations to the internal layout of the building as a result of the proposed alternative glazing solution; and (iii) other minor associated changes.

10 Carthusian Street, London, EC1M 6EB19/00733/FULL

from a Cafe ( A3) to a Sui Generis use (Nail and Beauty Salon) (77sq.m)

Barbican Estate Highwalks, London19/00744/LBCInstallation and display of 99 non-illuminated signs throughout the Barbican Estate Highwalks to replace existing signs and to provide signs in new locations.

27 Stanley Cohen House, Golden Lane Estate, London, EC1Y 0RL 19/00745/LBCRemove an existing water tank and boiler cupboard from a kitchen.

Salisbury House, Finsbury Circus, London, EC2M 5SQ19/00749/LBCInstallation of four glazed screens into existing

Dyers’ Hall, 10 Dowgate Hill, London, EC4R 2SU19/00751/FULLApplication under S73 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (as amended) to allow variation of condition 5 (approved plans) of planning permission dated 14th March 2019 (18/01268/FULL) to allow the lift shaft to be increased in height by 600mm.

Wax Chandlers’ Hall, Gresham Street, London, EC2V 7AD19/00753/FULL

Flat 3A, 12 Trinity Square, London, EC3N 4AL19/00763/FULLChange of Use from residential (Class C3) to short-term let accommodation for more than 90 days in a year (Class C3).

1 Poultry, London, EC2R 8EJ19/00764/LBCRedecoration of part of the ceiling within the existing unit at concourse level.

30 Cannon Street, London, EC4M 6XH19/00770/LBCInstallation and display of two externally illuminated fascia signs on the Bread Street elevation.

Department of the Built Environment, North Wing, Guildhall, Basinghall Street, London EC2, between 09.30 and 16.30. Representations must be made within 21 days of the date of this newspaper online or in writing to

Guildhall, London, EC2P 2EJ. In the event that an appeal against a decision of the Council proceeds by way of the expedited procedure, any representations made about the application will be passed to the Secretary of State and there will be no opportunity to make further representations.

FORUMEU rulesmean thatit’s difficultto offer theincentivesthat havemadefreeports asuccesselsewhereROBERT COLVILE ON FREEPORTSPAGE 14

ANNOUNCEMENTS

LEGAL AND PUBLIC NOTICES NEWSLETTERSThe biggest stories direct to your inbox

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CITYAM.COM/NEWSLETTER

Why are you supporting CGD? We’re excited to support City Giving Daythis year. It’s a chance for us to engage thestaff in giving back and make them feelproud to work at The Ned.

Which charities do you support?At The Ned we support a range of charitiessuch as Cancer Research UK, Alzheimer’s

We’re delighted to be apart of City Giving Day aswe’re proud of ourcommunity. We lookforward to supporting twoincredibly worthy causes.

Gareth Banner, ManagingDirector of The Ned

Supporting City Giving Day

We will be supporting Mental Health Mates and The LordMayors Appeal.

CHARITY IN ACTION

JOIN US AND REGISTER NOW AT

WWW.THELORDMAYORSAPPEAL.ORG/CGD

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH @LMAPPEAL #CGD #GoRed#peoplematter

Society and Comic Relief. The Ned alsopartners with charities Hospitality Action,CookforSyria, Kitchen Social, StreetSmartand SleepSmart. We raised over £30,000 forour partner charities in 2018.

How will you celebrate CGD?We’ve got a few initiatives in place,including a staff party and we’re adding a£1 voluntary donation on restaurant billsover £30 for the day. Individual teams atThe Ned will also come up with their ownideas from hosting staff yoga classes to abring and buy sale.

DIALIGHT

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P390

3505 Aug

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5 Aug31 Jul30 Jul 1 Aug 2 Aug

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Reuters

11TUESDAY 6 AUGUST 2019 MARKETSCITYAM.COM

CITYDASHBOARD YOUR ONE-STOP SHOP FOR BROKER VIEWS AND MARKET REPORTS

LONDON REPORT BEST OF THE BROKERS

STOCK market indexes fellsharply yesterday, joining asell-off in global markets, asUS-China trade tensionsprompted investors to

seek safe-haven assets, while Ocadoand Marks & Spencer (M&S) fell after sealing a deal to set up an online food joint venture.

The FTSE 100 shed 2.5 per cent in itsworst day since early December,while the mid-cap FTSE 250 sank 2per cent and hit its lowest level intwo months.

Markets have been alarmed by President Donald Trump’s actionto slap 10 per cent tariffs on $300bnin Chinese imports, prompting Chinato vow to retaliate.

With dealers shunning equities,gold prices jumped to their highestlevel in more than six years yesterday.

FTSE tumbles asUS-China tensionsfuel asset sell-off

FTSE

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In a plot twist at Cineworld, its antagonist Cinemark posted strong results lastweek that showed Cineworld’s US business Regal shedding market share. But,say analysts at Peel Hunt, investment and time can help Regal seize some of thisshare back. They say “buy” with a target price of 252p.

CINEWORLD

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Fertiliser firm Sirius Minerals is serious about investment. It has given guidance ona $500m (£412m) bond, due to price next week, at a yield of 13.5 per cent. Thiswas higher than analysts at Liberum were expecting, but they say it removesfinancing risk and could boost shares. They say “buy” with a target price of 40p.

To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com

SIRIUS MINERALS

30 Jul 31 Jul 1 Aug 2 Aug 5 Aug

5 Aug

14.60

15.2

15.4 P

15

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Metals miner Fresnillo added 4.7 percent and was the only blue-chip stockthat closed in the black.

M&S and Ocado fell 5.1 per cent and4.6 per cent respectively, followingtheir online food venture deal that will result in the termina-tion of Ocado’s current deal with Waitrose.

CITY MOVES WHO’S SWITCHING JOBSACCOR EUROPEAccor has announced thatKarelle Lamouche has beenappointed chief commercialofficer for Europe. In this newlycreated role, Karelle will leadAccor’s European commercialteam with responsibility fordriving the business revenuestrategy for the company andits partners across allEuropean markets.Karelle has been with Accor since 2003, most recentlyas senior vice president (SVP) for sales and marketing,distribution and revenue management across all its

brands in northern Europe, which includes the UK,Benelux and Nordics. Prior to that she was SVP foreconomy and budget hotels in the UK, with overallresponsibility for operations and marketing across theibis family of brands – Ibis, Ibis Styles and Ibis Budget.

CITI COMMERCIAL BANK Citi has appointed Raymond Gatcliffe as head of CitiCommercial Bank for Europe, Middle East and Africa(EMEA). Based in London, Raymond will report to SunilGarg, global head of Citi Commercial Bank, and DavidLivingstone, Citi chief executive officer, EMEA. He willjoin Citi’s executive committee for the region.Raymond joined Citi in Trinidad in 1994, and has held anumber of positions in Latin America, both in the

Corporate and Investment Banking businesses, and asCiti country officer (CCO). Most recently, Raymondheaded up the Caribbean and Central America clusterfor the bank’s newly formed Banking Capital MarketsAdvisory business, as well as serving as CCO forCaribbean countries. In addition to Raymond’sexperience with corporate clients, he has alsomanaged consumer and commercial bankingbusinesses in his prior CCO assignments in Puerto Ricoand Panama.

KPMGKPMG has announced the appointment of MarkThompson, Serious Fraud Office (SFO) chief operatingofficer, to its forensic practice. Mark will join KPMG as a

special adviser in November in a client facing role,where he will be focusing on major corporateinvestigations and advising companies on theirfinancial crime prevention programmes. He will alsolook to bring together other KPMG consultingcapabilities in order to provide a broader offer forclients dealing with economic crime. Mark hadpreviously worked for KPMG prior to joining the SFO in2004 where he has worked in a number of differentroles, including being head of proceeds of crime forfour years and also acting as interim director after thedeparture of Sir David Green CB QC in April 2018. In hismost recent role as chief operating officer, he has hadday-to-day responsibility for running the SFO underthe current director Lisa Osofsky.

To appear in CITYMOVES please email your career updates and pictures to citymoves@cityam.com

NEW YORK REPORT

Wall St sinksas yuan slides WALL Street’s major indexes

posted their biggestpercentage drop of the year

yesterday, as a fall in the yuanfollowing US President DonaldTrump’s vow to impose additionaltariffs on Chinese goods sparked fearsof further escalation of the US-Chinatrade war.

While stocks pared losses in the lasthour of trading, the benchmark S&P500 fell about three per cent to notchits biggest one-day percentage declinesince December last year. The declineamounted to a $766bn (£631m) paperloss for the index.

The S&P 500 has fallen for sixconsecutive sessions and is nowabout six per cent below its recordclosing high in July.

Shares of S&P 500 technologycompanies, which are heavily exposedto Chinese markets, fell 4.1 per cent.

Apple shares slid 5.2 per cent asanalysts warned that the newlyproposed tariffs may hurt demand forthe iPhone.

The Dow Jones Industrial Averagefell 2.9 per cent, the S&P 500 lost 2.98per cent, and the Nasdaq Compositedropped 3.47 per cent.

CITYDASHBOARD

NEWS

ALEX DANIEL

@alexmdanielBRITISH engineer Senior has becomethe latest aerospace supplier to highlight the impact of Boeinggrounding its flagship 737 Max jet, reporting a first-half profit drop ofmore than one-sixth yesterday.

FTSE 250 aerospace firm saidalthough it had mitigated some ofthe damage through stronger sales inother parts of its business, “the sectorhas been impacted” by thegrounding.

Shares in the firm fell 0.5 per centyesterday. Profit before tax fell 16 per

cent to £26.5m, while revenue rose 11per cent to £580.4m.

Senior makes sensors and otherhigh-tech parts for commercial jetsand defence customers. Boeing is oneof its most important customers.

The FTSE 250 firm, one of Britishaerospace engineering’s mainstayssince before the Second World War,warned in April that the groundingswould hit its aerospace unit’smargins for the rest of the year.

The department accounts fornearly three-quarters of total revenueand supplies parts directly to Boeingas well as engine suppliers and othercustomers.

Firms like General Electric andFrance’s Safran, which help make thejet’s engines, have also cutproduction rates while Boeing dealswith the crisis.

Chief executive David Squires said:“Notwithstanding the reported 737Max production rate cuts and theongoing uncertainty around thecurrent geopolitical andmacroeconomic backdrop, overall theboard expects to meet currentexpectations for 2019.

“Looking ahead, the group isworking to minimise the impact ofthe risk associated with thechallenges described.”

Aerospace engineer Senior’s profitsfall after Boeing 737 Max grounding

Diageo invests £180m ingreen African breweriesJESS CLARK

@jclarkjournoGUINNESS owner Diageo has an-nounced £180m of investment to improve the green credentials of itsAfrican breweries.

The investment will be directed to-wards 11 of the drinks giant’s brewingsites across seven African countriesand will deliver solar energy, biomasspower and water recovery initiatives.

Diageo’s African portfolio includesTusker, Bell, which is Uganda’s oldestbeer, Serengeti and local spirits in-cluding Kenya Cane and UgandaWaragi.

Diageo chief executive Ivan Menezessaid: “We believe this is one of thebiggest single investments in address-ing climate change issues across mul-tiple sub Saharan markets."

Under the new plans Diageo willswitch to renewable energy at threebreweries in Kenya and Uganda

Plans also include a new water recov-ery, purification and reuse facilityacross five sites, which could savemore than 2bn cubic litres of watereach year. Solar panels will be in-stalled at 12 breweries across six coun-tries, which are expected to produceup to 20 per cent of each brewery’selectricity demand.

CITYAM.COM12 TUESDAY 6 AUGUST 2019MARKETS

Gold.............................................................1441.75 34.95Silver ...............................................................16.19 0.19Brent Crude....................................................61.89 1.39Krugerrand.................................................1475.80 1.70Palladium ...................................................1421.00 -93.00Platinum .....................................................845.00 -7.00Tin Cash Official........................................17275.00 -14.00Lead Cash Official.......................................1973.00 -23.00Zinc Cash Official.......................................2395.00 -44.00

Copper Cash Official ..................................5875.50 6.00

Aluminium Cash Official ............................1757.00 -8.00

Nickel Cash Official ..................................14285.00 235.00Aluminium Alloy Cash Official ..................1270.00 -20.00

Cocoa Futures ............................................2316.00 -14.00

Coffee 'C' Futures...........................................95.43 -2.72

Feed Wheat Futures ....................................144.90 -1.05

Soybeans Futures Continuation Contract ...850.25 0.30

AB INBEV..........................................................87.65 -2.23 92.71 56.32ADIDAS N .......................................................266.65 -14.55 297.95 178.30AIR LIQUIDE.....................................................120.75 -0.60 127.20 101.85AIRBUS BR......................................................120.70 -2.64 133.86 77.50ALLIANZ..........................................................201.60 -3.35 218.70 170.50AMADEUS IT GRP BR-A.....................................68.74 -1.20 82.20 58.06ASML HLDG.....................................................190.84 -6.72 211.50 130.12AXA...................................................................21.82 -0.48 23.99 18.40BANCO SANTANDER ...........................................3.70 -0.06 4.71 3.68BASF N .............................................................56.50 -1.98 81.73 56.32BAYER N ...........................................................55.99 -2.32 96.97 52.00BBVA..................................................................4.46 -0.06 6.11 4.44BMW ................................................................63.34 -1.58 86.71 61.31BNP PARIBAS A................................................40.42 -0.74 55.34 38.14CRH PLC ............................................................27.90 -0.85 34.87 26.53DAIMLER N .......................................................43.98 -1.53 59.90 43.70DANONE ...........................................................76.22 -0.82 79.42 59.72DEUTSCHE POST N .............................................27.74 -0.77 32.20 23.43DEUTSCHE TELEKOM N ......................................14.65 -0.20 15.88 13.36ENEL N ................................................................6.12 -0.07 6.62 4.22ENGIE ................................................................13.35 -0.32 14.39 11.31ENI N.................................................................13.48 -0.20 16.71 13.39ESSILORLUXOTT...............................................120.50 -2.65 129.60 95.50FRESENIUS........................................................43.24 -1.53 71.00 38.50IBERDROLA ........................................................8.64 -0.02 9.13 5.81INDITEX ............................................................26.38 -0.66 28.86 21.85ING GROUP.........................................................8.85 -0.40 12.91 8.76INTESA SANPAOLO N ...........................................1.97 0.02 2.47 1.80KERING...........................................................442.35 -8.55 539.80 351.70KON AH DEL BR................................................20.24 -0.20 24.01 18.60L'OREAL..........................................................230.30 -7.30 257.80 182.00LINDE ...............................................................171.55 4.25 0.00 0.00LVMH ..............................................................343.25 -15.15 392.65 242.30MUENCHENER RUECKV N.................................213.70 -0.30 228.70 180.00NOKIA ................................................................4.76 -0.05 5.76 4.17ORANGE ............................................................13.28 -0.12 15.25 13.08ROY.PHILIPS ......................................................41.03 -0.68 43.67 29.05SAFRAN...........................................................123.65 -3.00 137.20 99.98SANOFI .............................................................72.35 -1.87 80.44 71.32SAP I ...............................................................106.28 -3.12 125.00 84.02SCHNEIDER EL ...................................................72.74 -1.68 81.36 57.54SIEMENS N........................................................90.01 -2.48 115.10 89.64SOCIETE GENERALE ..........................................22.40 -0.02 35.01 20.81TELEFONICA .......................................................6.66 -0.12 8.06 6.59TOTAL................................................................44.14 -0.60 55.39 43.72UNILEVER.........................................................50.92 -0.99 55.40 45.30VINCI ................................................................89.20 -2.08 94.96 69.98VIVENDI ............................................................23.98 -0.18 26.69 20.80VOLKSWAGEN VZ I ..........................................142.68 -4.24 163.70 131.02

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EU SHARES

3M ...................................................................164.71 -5.84 219.75 159.32ABBOTT LABORATOR.........................................83.16 -2.66 88.76 63.07ADOBE ...........................................................280.36 -13.35 313.11 204.95ALPHAB RG-C-NV..........................................1152.32 -41.67 1289.27 970.11ALPHABET-A..................................................1154.75 -41.57 1296.98 977.66AMAZON.COM.................................................1765.13 -58.11 2050.50 1307.00AMERICAN EXPRESS .......................................120.72 -3.59 129.34 89.05APPLE .............................................................193.34 -10.68 233.47 142.00AT&T.................................................................33.49 -0.68 34.64 26.80BANK OF AMERICA...........................................28.08 -1.30 31.91 22.66BERKSHIRE HATH RG-B ...................................197.73 -4.94 224.07 186.10BOEING CO......................................................331.06 -8.50 446.01 292.47CATERPILLAR...................................................121.65 -2.89 159.37 112.06CHEVRON.........................................................118.74 -1.99 127.60 100.22CISCO SYSTEMS..................................................51.37 -1.88 58.26 40.25CITIGROUP ........................................................65.18 -2.43 75.24 48.42COCA-COLA CO ..................................................51.65 -0.68 54.82 44.25COMCAST-A .......................................................41.61 -1.04 45.30 32.61DOW ................................................................44.77 -0.83 0.00 0.00EXXON MOBIL...................................................70.28 -1.47 87.36 64.65FACEBOOK-A....................................................181.73 -7.29 208.66 123.02GOLDMAN SACHS GR......................................201.68 -7.69 245.08 151.70HOME DEPOT .................................................204.94 -7.21 219.30 158.09IBM .................................................................140.76 -6.49 154.36 105.94INTEL................................................................46.97 -1.71 59.59 42.36JOHNSON & JOHNSO .......................................130.16 -0.91 148.99 121.00JPMORGAN CHASE..........................................109.57 -3.36 119.24 91.11MASTERCARD RG-A .......................................256.84 -12.61 283.33 171.89MCDONALD'S ..................................................210.45 -4.03 218.96 154.29MEDTRONIC ......................................................99.51 -2.82 103.95 81.66MERCK...............................................................83.12 -1.35 87.07 64.97MICROSOFT......................................................132.21 -4.69 141.68 93.96NETFLIX ..........................................................307.63 -11.20 386.80 231.23NIKE -B-...........................................................78.97 -2.17 90.00 66.53ORACLE.............................................................53.76 -2.08 60.50 42.40PAYPAL HOLDINGS..........................................103.60 -3.49 121.48 74.66PEPSICO ...........................................................118.61 0.56 119.74 101.06PEPSICO..........................................................124.40 -3.52 135.24 104.53PFIZER .............................................................36.96 -1.04 46.47 36.41PHILIP MRRS INT..............................................80.26 -3.91 92.74 64.67PROCTER&GAMBLE..........................................113.08 -3.36 121.76 78.49TRAVELERS COS...............................................143.93 -2.99 155.09 111.08TWITTER...........................................................40.37 -2.48 43.48 26.19UNITEDHEALTH GRO ......................................245.06 -4.99 287.94 208.07UTD TECHS ......................................................125.75 -5.06 144.40 100.48VERIZON COMM ................................................55.22 -0.37 61.58 51.76VISA RG-A ......................................................168.86 -8.56 184.07 121.60WALGREENS BOOTS ..........................................51.87 -1.81 86.31 49.31WALMART.......................................................105.82 -3.58 115.49 85.78WALT DISNEY..................................................138.30 -3.41 147.15 100.35WELLS FARGO...................................................46.14 -1.30 59.53 43.02

COMMODITIES CREDIT & RATESBoE IR Overnight .........................................0.750 0.00BoE IR 7 days ..............................................0.750 0.00BoE IR 1 month ...........................................0.750 0.00BoE IR 3 months .........................................0.750 0.00BoE IR 6 months.........................................0.750 0.00LIBOR Euro - overnight..............................-0.465 0.00LIBOR Euro - 12 months .............................-0.354 0.00LIBOR USD - overnight.................................2.104 0.00LIBOR USD - 12 months .................................2.116 0.00Halifax mortgage rate ................................3.990 0.00

Euro Base Rate ...........................................0.000 0.00Finance house base rate .............................1.000 0.00US Fed funds .................................................2.50 0.00US long bond yield........................................2.30 -0.09Euro Euribor ................................................-0.411 -0.01The vix index...............................................24.59 6.98The baltic dry index.................................1798.00 -24.00Markit iBoxx EUR .......................................247.33 0.23Markit iBoxx GBP .......................................354.62 2.17Markit iBoxx USD .......................................258.23 0.38

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US SHARES

CONSTRUCTION & MATERIALS

BAE Systems . . . . . . . . .538.8 -6.0 636.2 443.9Cobham . . . . . . . . . . . . .164.9 -1.2 168.3 96.8Meggitt . . . . . . . . . . . . .571.2 -11.4 602.6 458.0QinetiQ Group . . . . . . . .277.4 -2.8 312.4 267.9Rolls-Royce Holdi . . . . .815.0 -13.4 1094.0 759.2Senior . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .197.8 -1.0 327.8 185.4Ultra Electronics . . . . .1866.0 -35.0 1972.0 1232.

Bank of Georgia G . . . .1330.0 -22.0 1878.8 1310.0Barclays . . . . . . . . . . . . .147.3 -5.9 193.1 146.1Close Brothers Gr . . . .1285.0 -28.0 1660.0 1285.0CYBG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .153.3 -5.5 364.2 151.4HSBC Holdings . . . . . . .626.8 -19.3 725.8 600.8Lloyds Banking Gr . . . . .50.2 -1.1 66.6 49.8Metro Bank . . . . . . . . . .315.4 -17.0 3050.0 309.4Royal Bank of Sco . . . . .197.5 -5.5 270.4 197.2Standard Chartere . . . .638.4 -34.2 736.8 519.8TBC Bank Group . . . . . .1338.0 -6.0 1746.0 1242.0

Barr (A.G.) . . . . . . . . . . .679.0 -3.0 975.0 610.0Britvic . . . . . . . . . . . . . .875.0 -30.0 956.0 745.0Coca-Cola HBC AG . . .2773.0 -78.0 3074.0 2244.0Diageo . . . . . . . . . . . . .3382.0 -61.0 3526.0 2523.5

Croda Internation . . . .4674.0 -2.0 5447.7 4576.0Elementis . . . . . . . . . . . .138.3 -2.5 247.8 129.8Johnson Matthey . . . .2930.0-103.0 3752.0 2620.0Sirius Minerals . . . . . . . . .14.6 -0.4 38.5 13.5Synthomer . . . . . . . . . .279.8 -13.0 537.2 279.8Victrex plc . . . . . . . . . .1899.0 -63.0 3408.0 1877.0

Balfour Beatty . . . . . . . .196.9 -6.9 296.5 195.6CRH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2578.0 -53.0 2735.0 1971.5Galliford Try . . . . . . . . .560.5 -19.0 1104.0 512.0Ibstock . . . . . . . . . . . . . .211.4 -1.4 262.0 193.1

Centrica . . . . . . . . . . . . . .71.2 -2.2 155.6 70.4National Grid . . . . . . . .842.0 -14.6 889.2 748.7Pennon Group . . . . . . . .710.2 -18.0 792.8 684.2Severn Trent . . . . . . . .1993.5 -47.5 2153.0 1770.0United Utilities . . . . . . .776.8 -18.6 873.6 682.4

Smith (DS) . . . . . . . . . .320.9 -17.3 513.4 292.2Smiths Group . . . . . . .1548.5 -55.5 1666.0 1279.5Smurfit Kappa Gro . . .2438.0 -82.0 3292.0 1934.0Vesuvius . . . . . . . . . . . .477.2 -13.8 662.0 471.4

Auto Trader Group . . . . .513.4 -12.8 606.0 388.5B&M European Valu . . .349.0 -6.4 426.3 278.6Card Factory . . . . . . . . . .161.1 -3.0 212.4 158.5Dixons Carphone . . . . . .114.7 -0.5 179.8 107.6Dunelm Group . . . . . . .875.5 -14.5 981.0 482.8Inchcape . . . . . . . . . . . .575.5 -15.0 716.5 486.6JD Sports Fashion . . . . .582.0 -32.2 649.8 318.5Just Eat . . . . . . . . . . . . .731.2 -5.2 806.4 533.8Kingfisher . . . . . . . . . . .209.4 -5.6 299.4 202.2Marks & Spencer G . . . .190.7 -10.4 299.1 188.8

Marshalls . . . . . . . . . . .608.0 -11.0 690.0 412.2Polypipe Group . . . . . .384.6 -12.4 453.8 307.8

Contour Global . . . . . . .164.2 -2.8 246.0 150.1Drax Group . . . . . . . . . .295.0 -10.0 427.2 260.2SSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1080.0 -17.5 1280.0 1008.0

Halma . . . . . . . . . . . . .1878.5 -60.5 2094.0 1237.0Morgan Advanced M . . .251.0 0.0 363.0 237.0Oxford Instrument . . .1264.0 -10.0 1424.0 842.0Renishaw . . . . . . . . . .3464.0-160.0 5520.0 3436.0Spectris . . . . . . . . . . . .2357.0-103.0 2898.0 1966.5

Aberforth Smaller . . . .1150.0 -16.0 1394.0 1120.0Alliance Trust . . . . . . . .796.0 -17.0 838.0 672.0Apax Global Alpha . . . .154.0 -1.0 159.0 127.0AVI Global Trust . . . . . .738.0 -22.0 781.0 660.0Baillie Gifford J . . . . . . .800.0 -19.0 866.0 663.0Bankers Inv Trust . . . . .922.0 -21.0 970.0 766.0BBGI SICAV S.A. ( . . . . . .154.0 -0.5 168.0 142.5BlackRock Smaller . . .1340.0 -30.0 1600.0 1160.0BMO Global Smalle . . .1368.0 -38.0 1495.0 1220.0Caledonia Investm . . .3020.0 -15.0 3110.0 2650.0City of London In . . . . .402.5 -10.5 434.0 376.0Edinburgh Inv Tru . . . .566.0 -13.0 699.0 565.3F&C Investment Tr . . . .695.0 -14.0 741.0 616.0Fidelity China Sp . . . . .208.0 -10.5 250.0 182.4Fidelity European . . . . .244.5 -5.0 257.5 202.0Fidelity Special . . . . . . .243.5 -8.5 278.0 220.0Finsbury Growth & . . . .912.0 -24.0 956.0 740.0GCP Infrastructur . . . . . .123.0 0.4 130.8 122.4Genesis Emerging . . . .740.0 -21.0 783.0 615.0Greencoat UK Wind . . . .137.0 0.0 143.2 122.8HarbourVest Globa . . .1660.0 -20.0 1726.0 1300.0Herald Investment . . .1284.0 -40.0 1364.0 1055.0HGCapital Trust . . . . . .206.0 -1.0 220.0 175.0HICL Infrastructu . . . . . .164.4 0.6 170.1 149.9International Pub . . . . .159.2 -0.4 163.4 146.8JPMorgan American . .469.0 -10.0 494.5 386.5JPMorgan Emerging . . .987.0 -35.0 1066.0 759.0JPMorgan Indian I . . . . .701.0 -24.0 790.0 566.0JPMorgan Japanese . . .440.0 -8.0 470.0 367.0Jupiter European . . . . .842.0 -13.0 895.0 666.0Law Debenture Cor . . .566.0 -10.0 636.0 534.0Mercantile Invest . . . . . .192.4 -5.4 219.0 168.0Monks Inv Trust . . . . . . .913.0 -21.0 964.0 710.0Murray Internatio . . . . .1132.0 -38.0 1208.0 1056.0NB Global Floatin . . . . . .89.8 0.2 93.3 87.6NextEnergy Solar . . . . .117.5 1.0 124.5 108.0Pantheon Internat . . .2200.0 -5.0 2330.0 1955.0Perpetual Income . . . .294.5 -9.0 364.5 294.5Pershing Square H . . .1444.0 -6.0 1480.0 990.0Personal Assets T . . .42500.0 100.042800.038900.0Polar Capital Tec . . . . .1386.0 -72.0 1500.0 1066.0RIT Capital Partn . . . . .2035.0 -45.0 2150.0 1892.0Riverstone Energy . . . .754.0 -50.0 1282.0 754.0Schroder Asia Pac . . . .429.0 -18.0 469.5 379.0Scottish Inv Trus . . . . . .806.0 -15.0 902.0 748.0Scottish Mortgage . . . .520.5 -22.5 568.5 441.4Sequoia Economic . . . .113.4 0.6 115.2 106.0Smithson Investme . . .1214.0 -32.0 1278.0 1000.2Syncona Limited N . . . .236.5 -5.0 302.5 213.5Temple Bar Inv Tr . . . .1186.0 -44.0 1366.0 1116.0Templeton Emergin . . .768.0 -24.0 829.0 649.0The Renewables In . . . .125.2 0.4 133.2 109.3TR Property Inv T . . . . .415.0 -5.0 433.5 353.5Vietnam Enterpris . . . .470.0 -1.5 473.3 420.0VinaCapital Vietn . . . . .348.0 -1.0 352.9 318.0Witan Inv Trust . . . . . . .212.5 -5.0 227.6 189.6Woodford Patient . . . . .42.7 -2.0 91.0 41.4Worldwide Healthc . .2720.0 -50.0 2915.0 2325.0

3i Group . . . . . . . . . . .1069.0 -34.0 1164.5 756.23i Infrastructure . . . . . .282.0 0.5 303.0 232.5AJ Bell . . . . . . . . . . . . . .392.0 -13.5 477.0 220.0Allied Minds . . . . . . . . . .61.0 -4.0 87.1 37.3Amigo Holdings . . . . . .150.0 4.2 297.5 144.6Arrow Global Grou . . . .266.8 -3.6 273.0 167.2ASA International . . . . .348.0 -5.0 510.0 320.0Ashmore Group . . . . . .509.5 -16.0 542.5 337.0Brewin Dolphin Ho . . . .296.0 -9.8 366.0 294.4Charter Court Fin . . . . . .271.5 -10.5 375.0 228.8City of London In . . . . . .418.5 -2.0 440.0 360.0CMC Markets . . . . . . . . . .88.7 -3.3 193.0 77.4Coats Group . . . . . . . . . .74.0 -2.1 91.3 69.8Georgia Capital . . . . . . .991.0 3.0 1260.0 941.0Hargreaves Lansdo . . .1903.5 -139.5 2433.0 1633.0IG Group Holdings . . . .565.6 -1.6 919.0 474.8IntegraFin Holdin . . . . .382.5 -0.5 406.1 269.0Intermediate Capi . . . .1313.0 -25.0 1429.0 899.0International Per . . . . . .101.0 -5.0 248.8 100.2Investec . . . . . . . . . . . . .432.9 -15.5 561.0 423.4IP Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . .61.7 -0.9 131.2 61.2John Laing Group . . . . .377.6 -5.8 402.0 283.2JTC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .345.0 -4.0 440.0 287.0Jupiter Fund Mana . . . .353.7 -1.7 433.3 287.6Liontrust Asset M . . . . .766.0 -12.0 816.0 532.0LMS Capital . . . . . . . . . . .50.2 0.0 53.5 44.0London Finance & . . . . .38.5 0.0 44.5 37.5London Stock Exch . .6606.0-208.0 7058.0 3867.0Man Group . . . . . . . . . . .155.4 -6.9 183.0 126.8OneSavings Bank . . . . .333.0 -11.0 447.4 330.0Paragon Banking G . . .392.4 -6.8 502.0 379.2Plus500 Ltd (DI) . . . . . .568.6 -6.6 2040.0 495.0Provident Financi . . . . .401.6 -19.6 692.6 394.9Quilter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .137.1 -3.0 156.6 110.6Rathbone Brothers . . .2125.0 -10.0 2634.0 2085.0Real Estate Credi . . . . . .170.0 1.0 175.5 163.0Record . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31.7 -1.0 42.1 27.3River and Mercant . . . .267.0 2.0 330.0 212.0S&U . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2140.0 -80.0 2605.0 1767.5Sanne Group . . . . . . . . .521.0 -27.0 752.0 450.0Schroders . . . . . . . . . .2897.0 -123.0 3210.0 2334.0Standard Life Abe . . . . .283.4 -8.1 378.9 224.9TP ICAP . . . . . . . . . . . . .282.8 -10.7 324.5 267.2Walker Crips Grou . . . . . .27.0 0.0 39.0 24.0XPS Pensions Grou . . . . .117.0 4.5 180.0 95.0

BT Group . . . . . . . . . . . .183.4 -2.6 264.7 182.2TalkTalk Telecom . . . . . .103.1 -0.7 137.0 96.6Telecom Plus . . . . . . . .1346.0 -12.0 1528.0 1010.0

Greggs . . . . . . . . . . . . .2132.0 -58.0 2476.0 1006.0Morrison (Wm) Sup . . .186.2 -4.7 269.4 184.6Ocado Group . . . . . . . .1152.5 -56.0 1435.0 749.8Sainsbury (J) . . . . . . . . .189.5 -5.9 341.5 187.9SSP Group . . . . . . . . . . .693.0 -17.0 744.4 615.1Tesco . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .217.1 -3.6 266.2 189.6UDG Healthcare Pu . . . .755.0 -22.5 824.0 551.0

Associated Britis . . . . .2393.0 -23.0 2638.0 2041.0Bakkavor Group . . . . . . .99.9 -2.7 190.0 99.9Cranswick . . . . . . . . . .2594.0 -32.0 3454.0 2472.0Greencore Group . . . . .208.5 -2.6 230.0 162.9Hilton Food Group . . . .905.0 0.0 1088.0 880.0Tate & Lyle . . . . . . . . . . .727.0 -16.2 800.4 630.6Unilever . . . . . . . . . . .4868.0 -71.5 5091.0 3931.0

Mondi . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1593.5 -36.5 2236.0 1564.0

����� �� �� ��

Next . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5904.0 -22.0 6064.0 3991.0Pets at Home Grou . . . .219.8 3.6 224.0 110.0Sports Direct Int . . . . . .216.2 -5.0 406.7 213.6Ted Baker . . . . . . . . . . .900.0 -3.5 2378.0 800.0Vivo Energy . . . . . . . . . .118.8 3.6 154.0 96.0WH Smith . . . . . . . . . .2018.0 -50.0 2186.0 1697.0

Assura . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .64.7 0.4 66.4 52.4Convatec Group . . . . . . .181.9 -3.6 239.0 118.6Mediclinic Intern . . . . . .313.0 -8.3 514.2 293.4NMC Health . . . . . . . . .2402.0 0.0 4120.0 2192.0Smith & Nephew . . . .1849.0 -34.0 1924.5 1258.0

Barratt Developme . . .625.6 -13.6 663.0 434.0Bellway . . . . . . . . . . . .2868.0 -53.0 3226.0 2419.0Berkeley Group Ho . . .3736.0 -119.0 3981.0 3226.0Bovis Homes Group . .1030.0 -37.0 1177.0 828.0Countryside Prope . . . .277.6 -10.0 353.2 270.0Crest Nicholson H . . . . .347.0 -9.0 404.8 296.4McCarthy & Stone . . . . .135.9 -1.1 142.7 107.1Persimmon . . . . . . . . .1906.0 -47.0 2501.0 1859.5

Admiral Group . . . . . .2085.0 -61.0 2300.0 1932.5Beazley . . . . . . . . . . . . .550.0 -8.5 599.0 492.6Direct Line Insur . . . . . .309.9 -8.7 366.5 304.9Hastings Group Ho . . . .189.5 -3.0 274.2 174.0Hiscox Limited (D . . . .1599.0 -51.0 1777.0 1418.0Lancashire Holdin . . . . .681.0 -14.5 725.5 530.0RSA Insurance Gro . . . .536.0 -4.4 641.0 496.6Sabre Insurance G . . . .263.5 -2.5 294.0 249.0

Aviva . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .384.9 -15.9 502.8 364.6Legal & General G . . . . .244.1 -7.9 291.2 223.7Phoenix Group Hol . . . .655.4 -21.4 724.8 544.0Prudential . . . . . . . . . .1512.0 -88.5 1824.0 1340.0St James's Place . . . . . .920.8 -17.6 1171.0 911.8

4Imprint Group . . . . . .2910.0 20.0 2953.4 1800.0Ascential . . . . . . . . . . . .373.4 -10.6 434.8 337.2Bloomsbury Publis . . . .224.0 -6.0 243.0 190.5Centaur Media . . . . . . . .45.5 0.0 56.5 34.7Entertainment One . . . .419.8 -8.4 483.4 336.4Euromoney Institu . . . .1318.0 -36.0 1412.0 1132.0

Reckitt Benckiser . . . .5972.0-180.0 7155.0 5593.0Redrow . . . . . . . . . . . . .538.0 -5.0 674.6 460.8Taylor Wimpey . . . . . . .147.4 -8.1 192.3 129.3

Bodycote . . . . . . . . . . .700.5 -14.5 1024.0 676.0Hill & Smith Hold . . . . .1077.0 21.0 1473.0 902.5IMI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .968.6 -30.0 1227.0 870.0Melrose Industrie . . . . .170.5 -8.8 233.9 146.3RHI Magnesita N.V . . .4236.0 20.0 5085.0 3318.0Rotork . . . . . . . . . . . . . .285.9 -10.4 359.0 235.7Spirax-Sarco Engi . . .8500.0-290.0 9400.0 5900.0Weir Group . . . . . . . . .1305.0 -71.0 1939.0 1240.0

Evraz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .607.2 -5.6 709.4 442.1Ferrexpo . . . . . . . . . . . .234.0 -9.6 301.3 143.5

BBA Aviation . . . . . . . . .311.0 -3.6 324.8 207.0Clarkson . . . . . . . . . . .2425.0 -40.0 2900.0 1878.0Fisher (James) & . . . .2030.0 -50.0 2260.0 1600.0Royal Mail . . . . . . . . . . .205.2 -5.9 489.0 194.5

Future . . . . . . . . . . . . .1056.0 -56.0 1248.0 375.0Goco Group . . . . . . . . . . .82.8 -0.5 118.4 64.6Haynes Publishing . . . .223.0 -1.0 227.0 160.0Huntsworth . . . . . . . . . .99.0 -1.0 125.0 81.0Informa . . . . . . . . . . . . .828.4 -22.4 892.0 605.8ITE Group . . . . . . . . . . . . .71.0 -2.0 83.7 56.3ITV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .105.3 -1.5 170.1 104.3Moneysupermarket. . .348.6 -8.4 417.7 264.0Pearson . . . . . . . . . . . . .816.2 -14.2 1027.5 769.2Reach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .90.2 -1.0 92.3 54.6Relx plc . . . . . . . . . . . .1889.5 -29.5 1978.0 1491.5Rightmove . . . . . . . . . .504.6 -10.3 585.1 420.9STV Group . . . . . . . . . . .370.0 -3.0 432.5 318.0Tarsus Group . . . . . . . . .425.0 1.0 438.0 243.0WPP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .910.6 -26.6 1301.0 800.4

Acacia Mining . . . . . . . .233.0 6.8 256.6 96.1Anglo American . . . . .1820.0 -64.0 2266.0 1464.6Antofagasta . . . . . . . . .819.2 -26.8 1022.5 727.2BHP Group . . . . . . . . . .1804.4 -39.6 2049.0 1490.6Centamin (DI) . . . . . . . .133.5 4.0 136.2 79.8Fresnillo . . . . . . . . . . . .640.0 29.0 1027.5 601.0Glencore . . . . . . . . . . . .235.0 -7.3 341.5 228.0Hochschild Mining . . . .208.2 6.2 217.0 149.1Kaz Minerals . . . . . . . . .491.7 -20.9 738.4 436.7Polymetal Interna . . .1000.0 15.2 1031.0 597.2Rio Tinto . . . . . . . . . . .4290.0 -96.5 4976.5 3486.0

Inmarsat . . . . . . . . . . . .575.0 -3.4 581.6 362.8Vodafone Group . . . . . .147.7 -2.7 186.7 123.3

BP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .515.6 -11.3 598.3 485.9Cairn Energy . . . . . . . . .146.0 -2.0 250.0 140.0Energean Oil & Ga . . . .1036.0 -14.0 1082.0 510.0Premier Oil . . . . . . . . . . .70.8 -4.0 143.6 55.6Royal Dutch Shell . . . .2362.0 -41.5 2666.0 2213.0Royal Dutch Shell . . . .2362.0 -46.5 2705.5 2227.0Tullow Oil . . . . . . . . . . . .176.2 -6.0 266.3 165.2

Hunting . . . . . . . . . . . . .445.4 -14.6 849.0 438.0Petrofac Ltd. . . . . . . . . .399.8 0.3 663.4 380.0Wood Group (John) . . .473.4 -15.1 796.4 389.9

Burberry Group . . . . . .2163.0 -86.0 2345.0 1623.5PZ Cussons . . . . . . . . . . .211.5 -5.0 244.0 178.6

AstraZeneca . . . . . . . .7099.0 -141.0 7240.0 5325.0BTG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .837.5 -0.5 853.0 508.5Dechra Pharmaceut . .2798.0 -68.0 3168.0 2014.0Genus . . . . . . . . . . . . .2552.0 -28.0 2890.0 2098.0GlaxoSmithKline . . . . .1662.8 -28.2 1730.0 1418.0Hikma Pharmaceuti . . .1771.0 -44.5 2025.0 1510.5

BMO Commercial Pr . . .106.0 -2.2 149.4 106.0Capital & Countie . . . . .186.9 -6.4 279.5 185.2CLS Holdings . . . . . . . . .231.0 -2.5 255.0 195.4Daejan Holdings . . . . .5570.0 60.0 6190.0 5420.0Grainger . . . . . . . . . . . . .217.4 -5.0 278.5 205.8NewRiver REIT . . . . . . . .157.0 -5.4 278.5 156.0Safestore Holding . . . . .607.5 -10.0 658.5 499.4Savills . . . . . . . . . . . . . .940.0 -13.5 957.0 678.5St. Modwen Proper . . . .387.5 -10.5 441.5 365.0UK Commercial Pro . . . .80.6 0.4 92.7 79.2

Big Yellow Group . . . . .967.5 -13.5 1062.0 852.5British Land Comp . . . .479.3 -21.1 656.0 477.3

Derwent London . . . .2884.0 -46.0 3328.0 2761.0Great Portland Es . . . . .649.4 -13.2 773.6 646.6Hammerson . . . . . . . . .206.8 -7.2 513.2 202.9Intu Properties . . . . . . . .40.0 -3.1 201.5 38.5Land Securities G . . . . .774.2 -21.0 943.6 765.6LondonMetric Prop . . . .196.4 -3.6 215.2 172.7Primary Health Pr . . . . .129.2 0.0 139.0 106.4SEGRO . . . . . . . . . . . . . .734.2 -15.8 789.0 585.2Shaftesbury . . . . . . . . .750.5 -21.5 930.5 746.0Tritax Big Box Re . . . . . .147.0 -3.8 159.7 129.0Unite Group . . . . . . . . .1012.0 -3.0 1076.0 797.5Workspace Group . . . . .810.0 -6.5 1088.0 789.5

Avast . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .320.8 -7.0 345.8 229.6Aveva Group . . . . . . . .3754.0-146.0 4170.0 2284.0Computacenter . . . . . .1450.0 -31.0 1572.0 952.0FDM Group (Holdin . . .800.0 -8.0 1000.0 734.0Funding Circle Ho . . . . .104.8 -5.2 440.0 103.2Kainos Group . . . . . . . .514.0 -36.0 676.0 340.0Micro Focus Inter . . . . .1650.2 -89.6 2491.6 1434.4Playtech . . . . . . . . . . . .414.0 -19.2 560.4 361.8Sage Group . . . . . . . . . .702.2 -21.6 820.4 525.6Softcat . . . . . . . . . . . . .898.0 -31.5 993.5 565.0Sophos Group . . . . . . . .410.0 -15.0 539.5 298.2

Aggreko . . . . . . . . . . . . .811.8 -12.8 882.0 691.8Ashtead Group . . . . . . .2117.0 -79.0 2438.0 1586.5BCA Marketplace . . . . . .241.8 0.2 247.0 178.5Bunzl . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2082.0 -60.0 2551.0 2059.0Capita . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .136.3 -0.5 150.2 99.9DCC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6400.0-244.0 7390.0 5555.0Diploma . . . . . . . . . . . .1457.0 -21.0 1634.0 1150.0Electrocomponents . . .563.6 -30.8 761.6 480.0Equiniti Group . . . . . . . .211.4 0.2 266.0 186.2Essentra . . . . . . . . . . . .385.0 -13.6 507.0 325.4Experian . . . . . . . . . . .2451.0 -28.0 2544.0 1728.5Ferguson . . . . . . . . . .5850.0-202.0 6556.0 4749.0G4S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .183.1 -4.2 282.0 175.9Grafton Group Uni . . . .688.0 -13.0 937.0 630.0Hays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .146.9 -3.9 212.0 135.7Homeserve . . . . . . . . .1108.0 2.0 1263.0 849.0Howden Joinery Gr . . . .523.8 -14.4 573.4 416.4Intertek Group . . . . . .5434.0-208.0 5962.0 4387.0Network Internati . . . .604.0 -23.0 628.0 500.0Pagegroup . . . . . . . . . .438.8 -2.8 623.5 415.0PayPoint . . . . . . . . . . . .930.0 -63.0 1118.0 748.0Rentokil Initial . . . . . . .433.4 -5.1 447.0 284.8Robert Walters . . . . . . .495.0 -23.0 475.0 814.0Serco Group . . . . . . . . . .143.0 -0.9 147.4 84.1SIG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .118.9 -10.3 153.0 102.2Travis Perkins . . . . . . .1223.5 -33.0 1465.0 970.0

British American . . . .2980.0 -130.5 4222.5 2375.0Imperial Brands . . . . .2069.0 -67.0 2987.5 1846.8

Carnival . . . . . . . . . . . .3519.0 -92.0 5000.0 3412.0Cineworld Group . . . . . .238.5 -6.7 323.6 236.4Compass Group . . . . . .2015.0 -40.0 2110.0 1483.0Domino's Pizza Gr . . . . .233.8 -11.0 319.7 224.4EI Group . . . . . . . . . . . .282.4 1.4 285.0 152.0FirstGroup . . . . . . . . . . .112.0 -2.5 116.6 79.3Flutter Entertain . . . . .6320.0-226.0 8140.0 5525.0Go-Ahead Group . . . .2034.0 -36.0 2200.0 1480.0Greene King . . . . . . . . .602.0 -13.2 704.4 472.8GVC Holdings . . . . . . . .562.2 -16.4 1138.0 507.5InterContinental . . . .5289.0 -193.0 5738.0 3958.4International Con . . . . .444.5 -3.7 711.4 413.5Marston's . . . . . . . . . . . .106.9 -0.5 124.7 89.9Merlin Entertainm . . . . .451.3 0.8 452.5 307.1

Millennium & Copt . . . .680.0 0.0 685.0 436.0Mitchells & Butle . . . . . .312.0 -1.0 321.5 238.0National Express . . . . .421.2 -0.2 438.4 361.4PPHE Hotel Group . . .1840.0 20.0 1990.0 1490.0Rank Group . . . . . . . . . .149.4 1.0 187.4 135.0Restaurant Group . . . . .146.2 -3.6 221.9 111.9Stagecoach Group . . . . .130.4 0.5 177.0 115.5TUI AG Reg Shs (D . . . . .797.6 -18.6 1582.5 698.0Wetherspoon (J.D. . . . .1471.0 -30.0 1581.0 1066.0Whitbread . . . . . . . . .4255.0 -79.0 5114.0 3905.0William Hill . . . . . . . . . .138.8 -6.6 270.9 132.3Wizz Air Holdings . . . .3447.0-140.0 3769.0 2329.0

Abcam . . . . . . . . . . . . .1228.0 -25.0 1539.0 1017.0Advanced Medical . . . .284.0 -9.5 370.0 260.0Alliance Pharma . . . . . . .71.8 -0.2 95.6 60.0ASOS . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2500.0 -47.0 6222.0 2107.0Blue Prism Group . . . .1225.0 -49.0 2575.0 1040.0Camellia . . . . . . . . . .10550.0-100.0 11750.0 9100.0CareTech Holding . . . . .377.0 0.0 406.0 325.0Central Asia Meta . . . . .194.4 -4.6 266.5 193.4Clinigen Group . . . . . . .970.0 -32.0 1069.0 721.0CVS Group . . . . . . . . . . .885.5 -28.0 1023.0 395.0Dart Group . . . . . . . . . .766.0 2.5 1017.0 751.0Diversified Gas & . . . . . .105.5 -1.5 134.0 100.0Draper Esprit . . . . . . . .478.0 -32.0 645.0 458.0Eland Oil & Gas . . . . . . .122.6 -1.0 134.0 97.0EMIS Group . . . . . . . . .1194.0 -18.0 1242.0 864.0Fevertree Drinks . . . . .2292.0 -73.0 3956.0 2070.0First Derivatives . . . . .2765.0-140.0 4390.0 2050.0Frontier Developm . . . .915.0 -13.0 1385.0 740.0Gamma Communicati 1090.0 10.0 1195.0 688.0GB Group . . . . . . . . . . .580.0 -20.0 631.0 410.5Gooch & Housego . . . .1255.0 -37.5 1880.0 954.0Hurricane Energy . . . . . .42.7 -0.7 60.8 39.0Impax Asset Manag . . .236.0 0.0 295.0 184.0Iomart Group . . . . . . . .328.0 -4.0 475.0 308.0IQE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .59.0 -4.3 112.5 51.6James Halstead . . . . . .510.0 0.0 532.0 367.0Johnson Service G . . . .166.0 -4.0 174.8 113.6Keywords Studios . . . .1550.0 -65.0 2065.0 900.0Learning Technolo . . . .104.8 -2.2 166.5 62.2M&C Saatchi . . . . . . . . .335.0 -8.0 394.0 270.0M. P. Evans Group . . . . .662.0 -15.0 800.0 637.0Majestic Wine . . . . . . . .276.0 6.0 452.0 219.0Midwich Group . . . . . . .548.0 -8.0 685.0 491.5Mortgage Advice B . . . .570.0 0.0 720.0 490.0Next Fifteen Comm . . .590.0 -18.0 658.0 469.0Nichols . . . . . . . . . . . .1800.0 0.0 1840.0 1240.0Numis Corporation . . . .236.0 -1.0 424.5 221.5Polar Capital Hol . . . . . .536.0 -40.0 644.0 448.0Purplebricks Grou . . . . .116.0 1.0 300.0 90.0Redde . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .116.2 -2.2 196.0 90.0Renew Holdings . . . . .400.0 10.0 436.5 333.0RWS Holdings . . . . . . . .615.0 -23.0 656.0 415.5Scapa Group . . . . . . . . .195.0 -3.0 473.4 157.0Secure Income Rei . . . .416.0 -3.0 420.0 371.0Serica Energy . . . . . . . .108.0 -3.2 142.0 74.9Smart Metering Sy . . . .475.6 -2.6 665.0 472.2Telford Homes . . . . . . .349.0 0.0 430.0 267.0Thorpe (F.W.) . . . . . . . .326.0 -1.0 340.0 248.0Watkin Jones . . . . . . . .209.0 -1.5 232.5 192.2Young & Co's Brew . . .1625.0 -15.0 1885.0 1322.5Young & Co's Brew . . . .1130.0 -30.0 1300.0 1030.0

Fresnillo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .640.0 4.8Vivo Energy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .118.8 3.1Centamin (DI) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .133.5 3.1Hochschild Mining . . . . . . . . . . .208.2 3.1Acacia Mining . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .233.0 3.0Amigo Holdings . . . . . . . . . . . . .150.0 2.9Hill & Smith Holdi . . . . . . . . . . .1077.0 2.0Pets at Home Group . . . . . . . . . .219.8 1.7Polymetal Internat . . . . . . . . .1000.0 1.5PPHE Hotel Group L . . . . . . . . .1840.0 1.1

SIG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .118.9 -8.0Intu Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . .40.0 -7.1Hargreaves Lansdow . . . . . . . .1903.5 -6.8Kainos Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .514.0 -6.6PayPoint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .930.0 -6.3Riverstone Energy . . . . . . . . . .754.0 -6.2Prudential . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1512.0 -5.5Premier Oil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .70.8 -5.4JD Sports Fashion . . . . . . . . . . .582.0 -5.2Taylor Wimpey . . . . . . . . . . . . . .147.4 -5.2

������ �������

MAIN CHANGES UK 350

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GILTS

�������������� ��������������

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� �AEROSPACE & DEFENCE

BANKS

BEVERAGES

CHEMICALS

ELECTRICITY

ELECTRONIC & ELECTRICAL EQ.

EQUITY INVESTMENT INSTRUM.

FIXED LINE TELECOMS

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AIM 50

Tsy 3.750 19 . . . . . . .100.27 -0.03 103.4 100.3Tsy 2.000 20 . . . . . . .101.41 -0.03 102.5 101.4Tsy 4.750 20 . . . . . .102.47 -0.05 106.4 102.5Tsy 3.750 20 . . . . . . .103.51 -0.04 106.3 103.5Tsy 2.500 20 . . . . . .356.03 -0.04 361.4 355.8Tsy 8.000 21 . . . . . . .113.96 -0.06 120.4 113.6Tsy 4.000 22 . . . . . .109.48 -0.03 111.3 109.0Tsy 0.500 22 . . . . . .100.54 0.02 100.6 97.7Tsy 1.875 22 . . . . . . . .117.47 -0.05 118.3 115.5Tsy 2.250 23 . . . . . . .107.89 0.03 108.1 104.7Tsy 2.500 24 . . . . . .377.07 -0.02 377.4 358.7Tsy 0.125 24 . . . . . . .115.59 -0.03 115.7 110.9Tsy 5.000 25 . . . . . .125.86 0.06 126.0 122.1Tsy 4.250 27 . . . . . . .131.46 0.20 131.6 122.6Tsy 1.250 27 . . . . . . .139.45 0.03 139.7 128.4Tsy 6.000 28 . . . . . .150.40 0.20 150.5 140.5Tsy 0.125 29 . . . . . . .132.25 0.05 132.5 118.8Tsy 4.750 30 . . . . . .145.24 0.26 145.4 132.1Tsy 4.125 30 . . . . . .396.79 0.06 397.3 355.2Tsy 4.250 32 . . . . . .142.96 0.34 143.0 128.5Tsy 1.250 32 . . . . . . .162.62 0.04 162.7 144.1Tsy 0.125 36 . . . . . . .155.32 0.11 155.4 133.4Tsy 4.250 36 . . . . . .150.76 0.42 150.8 133.1Tsy 4.750 38 . . . . . .165.48 0.47 165.5 144.9Tsy 0.625 40 . . . . . .176.76 0.15 177.1 152.8Tsy 4.500 42 . . . . . .168.96 0.52 169.2 145.9Tsy 3.500 45 . . . . . .150.99 0.55 151.4 128.0Tsy 4.250 46 . . . . . . .171.30 0.55 171.7 145.7Tsy 4.025 49 . . . . . .178.04 0.57 178.5 150.0Tsy 0.500 50 . . . . .209.05 0.30 209.6 173.7Tsy 0.250 52 . . . . . .205.90 0.31 206.5 168.8

WORLD INDICES

FTSE 100 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7223.85 -183.21 -2.47FTSE 250 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18871.42 -381.75 -1.98FTSE All-Share . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3944.15 -95.38 -2.36FTSE AIM All-Share. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 907.25 -14.09 -1.53

S&P 500 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2844.74 -87.31 -2.98Dow Jones I.A.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25717.74 -767.27 -2.90Nasdaq Composite . . . . . . . . . . . . 7726.04 -278.03 -3.47Xetra DAX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11658.51 -213.93 -1.80

CAC 40. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5241.55 -117.45 -2.19Swiss Market Index . . . . . . . . . . . . 9599.43 -204.26 -2.08ISEQ Overall Index. . . . . . . . . . . . . 5809.55 -168.60 -2.82FTSEurofirst 300 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1454.32 -34.86 -2.34

Hang Seng. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26151.32 -767.26 -2.85Shanghai Composite . . . . . . . . . . . 2821.50 -46.34 -1.62STI Index. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3196.57 -64.36 -1.97ASX All Ordinaries . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6710.60 -135.50 -1.98

����� �� ��� ����� �� ��� ����� �� ��� ����� �� ���

MOBILE TELECOMS

MEDIA

MINING

SOFTWARE & COMPUTER SERV.

HHOLD GDS & HOME CONSTR.

NON LIFE INSURANCE

INDUSTRIAL TRANSPORTATION

GENERAL RETAILERS INDUSTRIAL METALS & MINING

CONSTRUCTION & MATERIALS

€/$ 1.1199 0.0091

€/£ 0.9225 0.0092

€/¥ 118.74 0.3424

/€ 1.0837 0.0107

/$ 1.2138 0.0023

/¥ 128.69 0.9431

FTSE 100

7223.85183.21

FTSE 250

18871.42381.75

FTSE ALL SHARE

3944.1595.38

DOW JONES

25717.74767.27

NASDAQ

7726.04278.03

S&P 500

2844.7487.31

FINANCIAL SERVICES

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EVENTS@CITYAM.COM

13TUESDAY 6 AUGUST 2019 FEATURECITYAM.COM

OFFICE POLITICS

LOVE Island has once againgraced our screens this summer.Six million of us watched foreight weeks as bronzed, tonedmillennials took to reality TV in

search of true love – not to forget a£50,000 cash prize, lucrative branddeals, and an army of followers.

While it may appear indulgent to getso invested in these seemingly vapidpersonalities, there are important les-sons that can be drawn from thedrama of the show. This year’s islandershave presented us with a display of themost toxic behaviour yet – but that isnot necessarily a bad thing.

Love Island is meant to represent amicrocosm of our society, and it hasbrought awareness to noxious al-liances – and how to prevent them.

Enter the toxic office relationship. Disputes ranging from low-level bick-

ering to the more serious, messy work-place wars disrupt productivity andmake the office an unpleasant space.

While a colourful villa on the isle ofMajorca seems alien to the open plan,

The popular realityTV show can teachus how to deal with noxious officerelationships

modular, offices of the City, both locations are susceptible to the pettyworld of gossip and jealousy.

Perhaps it’s the common phenome-non of gaslighting that plagues youroffice: psychological manipulation in-flicted on one person with the aim tomake them doubt the authenticity oftheir own emotions.

We saw this happen between contestants Amber Gill and MichaelGriffiths. Rather than accepting re-sponsibility for his wrongdoings,Michael repeatedly called his partnerchildish for daring to confront him

about his behaviour. Amber’s emo-tional resilience throughout her timein the villa ultimately awarded her thewinning title. She and her partnerGreg O’Shea were not the most estab-lished couple, but Amber’s condemna-tion of Michael’s toxic behaviour andher refusal to submit to it resonatedwith the British public.

There were other instances of nega-tive and manipulative behaviourthroughout the series. Lucie’s friend-ships with the other male contestantsalarmed her partner Joe – he broughtup his concerns, telling her “I didn’t

BREAKINGBAD

NetflixFree

It’s over. You sitthere staringvacantly into the distance,wondering howyou’re going tomove on fromthis. You’ve been living offtakeaways foreight weeks, andyour skin is nowa dusty shade ofgrey. Even thedaylight burnsyour eyes. Don’tworry, LoveIsland might beover, but there isa tonne of stuffyou can watchon Netflix.

While a villa inMajorca seemsalien to the officesof the City, bothare susceptible to gossip andjealousy

Lessons in Love Island: Toxic colleagues think you were ‘that’ type of girl”.

Double standards in the workplacecan lead to resentment between em-ployees, so it is important to addressthose being treated differently, as Luciedid so in a conversation with Joe, estab-lishing her right to spend time withwhom she wishes. Or the case of Amy,who’s boyfriend blamed her for hisown disloyalty, prompting her to quiterightly leave the villa to focus on herown mental health.

In times of high pressure, col-leagues often turn to blaming eachother as an outlet for their emotion.It is important here to understand,like Amy did, that it is not in fact ourfault, and that our own wellbeingmatters more than pleasing others.

Many have criticised Love Island forbroadcasting such toxic relationships,but that’s unfair to say. The show’s au-dience does not condone such behav-iour – we learn from it.

Through the eyes of the contestants,we are exposed to the red flags ofemotional manipulation.

Ultimately, Love Island should bepraised for condemning negative be-haviour and defending those who aresuffering at its hands.

If we were to transfer these valuesinto the workplace, we would be moreproductive and more aware of warn-ing signs that lead towards a toxic of-fice relationship.

£Hana El-chamaa is a freelance journalist.

CITYAM.COM14 TUESDAY 6 AUGUST 2019OPINION

EDITED BY LUKE GRAHAM

[Re: Cycling – a perfect blend ofbusiness and pleasure]While Gareth Mills is correct in his beliefthat businesses should encourage peopleto “get on their bikes” and his suggestionthat businesses should look at installingbike racks or ensuring that theiremployees have access to showers, hisarticle overlooks the fact that, in themajority of cases, the real challenge is thatthe buildings we occupy were often notdesigned with cycle commuters in mind.

Without a doubt, the current provision ofcycling facilities in the workplace is farbelow that required if we are to meetofficial targets for the number of peoplethe authorities wish to see cycle to work.

Research undertaken by RemitConsulting, in conjunction with the BritishCouncil of Offices, suggests that propertydevelopers and investors can gain acompetitive advantage with theirproperties through the provision of topquality cycling facilities. This wasunderlined during a recent cycle tour ofoffice properties within central Londonthat we organised to provide propertyprofessionals with the opportunity toexperience the facilities offered by anumber of buildings from the perspectiveof cycle commuters.

Our ReTour event also revealed that thebest facilities are those within buildingsthat provide a range of bicycle storagesolutions. It is not simply enough toprovide racks and showers as there is nota “one size fits all” answer. The popularityof folding bikes and the growth in the useof electric bikes are examples of thechanging nature of cycling, and alsoconfirm the need for a variety in thefacilities provided.

If we are to encourage cycling as part ofour business culture, these issues need tobe addressed by landlords and propertymanagers as much, if not more than, thebusinesses that occupy their buildings.Neil Webster, Remit Consulting

LETTERSTO THE EDITOR

Dominic Cummings, one of BorisJohnson’s most senior advisers, hassuggested that it is already too late forMPs to stop a #NoDealBrexit beforeOctober 31 but is he right?@Telegraph

NEW: Dominic Grieve insists pro-Remain MPs can still stop no-dealBrexit as he blasts ‘disinformation’from Dominic Cummings@politicshome

The future of the UK and of Brexit nowrests on which of two Dominics –Cummings or Grieve – is actually the cleverest@davidallengreen

On that Scotland poll:– It’s just one poll– It’s within the margin of error– It’s just one poll– This might be a short term Boris/nodeal talk effect– Or it might be long term, especially ifno deal actually happens– Or it might be an outlier– Because it’s just one poll@harrydcarr

Putting pedalpower to the test

BEST OFTWITTER

ONE OF the most excitingshifts in policy under thenew government has beenits whole-hearted embraceof free ports. But many

people are still puzzled by whatthey are.

In a nutshell, free ports are areaswhich are within the UK, but out-side its customs borders. So you canbring your goods into the zone –usually by ship, though you can setthem up around airports too – andpay no customs duty.

You are then free to move thosegoods on to another country; tobring them into the UK (paying tar-iffs in the process); or to use a fac-tory in the free port zone to processthem and then either import or re-export the finished article.

The government will often offerincentives to help free ports de-velop, for example offering taxbreaks to firms that relocate there.

Now I have to declare an interesthere. The idea of free ports as a wayto boost Britain’s economy post-Brexit was first proposed in TheFree Ports Opportunity, a 2016 re-port for our think tank by RishiSunak, one of the Tory party’s risingstars (and the new chief secretary tothe Treasury).

It’s a pretty exciting idea. Worldwide, there are roughly

3,500 free trade zones employing66m people. America’s 250 zoneshandle $750bn in merchandiseevery year. Yet on the British main-land, there are none.

Sunak has calculated that if aBritish free port programme was assuccessful as the American one, itcould generate around 86,000 jobs.

If the Britishprogramme was assuccessful as theAmerican one, itcould generatearound 86,000 jobs

Free ports could turn Brexitto our economic advantage

Robert Colvile

Of course, like everything to dowith Brexit, the idea has its critics.

One of the most common objec-tions is that free ports are allowedby the European Union anyway. Sowhy do we have to Brexit to get thebenefits?

Well, that’s technically true. Butit comes with severe qualifications.

As a member of the EU’s CustomsUnion, the UK does not control itsown customs and tariffs. EU stateaid rules mean that it’s extremelydifficult to offer the kind of incen-tives that have made free ports asuccess elsewhere – indeed, any at-tempt to provide them (for exam-ple, favourable tax treatment) canand will be challenged by anymember state.

A United Nations study concludedthat “free trade zones as originallyconceived do not exist any more inthe EU”.

The next claim – now being madeby the Labour Party – is that freeports merely redistribute economicactivity rather than generate it:firms move to the zones because ofthe tax advantages, leaving overallGDP unchanged.

But the evidence suggests thatthis isn’t the case. We all know thatlower taxes and simpler regulationspur economic growth.

There would be a particular in-centive for manufacturing firms,since raw materials can beprocessed into higher-value prod-ucts within free ports without in-curring customs charges.

And even if growth were simplyredistributed, it would still be avery good thing.

Britain is a country with cav-

ernous geographical inequality –and of the UK’s 30 largest ports,more than half are in the poorestparts of the country.

Free ports and accompanying low-tax zones may be just what’s neededto help these areas compete. That’swhy Ben Houchen, elected mayor ofTees Valley, has been so vocal in his

support of the idea: a detailed studyfor construction firm Mace showedthat more than 17,500 jobs could becreated on Teesside alone.

Another criticism is that thesefree ports become lawless areas – ahaven for all manner of ill-gottenwealth to be stored.

It’s true that the GenevaFreeport, the most famous suchzone, has become a treasure troveof art and antiquities. But just because UK free ports would beoutside our customs territory doesnot mean that they would be out-side the UK. Indeed, the fact thatBritish law would be enforced is akey attraction for investors.

A better point is that we shouldfocus on making sure that the cus-toms regime across the entire UK isso sympathetic that there is noneed for free ports at all.

Indeed, Brexit practically de-mands that we invest in developinga genuinely world-class customsregime. But even then, free portscould still have a role as economicincubators, with different incen-tives and structures tested and thenrolled out more widely – a recipethat worked extremely well inChina and elsewhere.

It was Victor Hugo who said thatthere was nothing as powerful asan idea whose time has come.

Free ports are not a new idea, butthey offer a tangible and welcomeway that we could turn Brexit toour economic advantage – and indoing so spread prosperity morewidely across the UK.

£Robert Colvile is director of the Centrefor Policy Studies.

THE LACK of diversity intechnology is not a newissue. A study by Statistashowed that female em-ployees make up between

26 percent and 43 percent of theworkforce at major tech companies.

However, even this does not tellthe whole story, as the number ofwomen in engineering or product-focussed jobs is even lower.

Diversity goes far beyond the pres-ence of women in technology. In-clusive Boards recently found thatonly one in nine senior UK techleaders come from black, Asian orminority ethnic backgrounds.

This is a pressing challenge, sinceit has been proven time and againthat diversity drives success – re-gardless of industry.

And if organisations in the tech-nology sector are to prosper, thendiversity should be a boardroompriority. While this issue is onethat can define the success of abusiness, it also has wider ramifi-

cations for society as a whole. As day-to-day life becomes more

driven by technology, the compa-nies that create these productshave a responsibility to producegreat experiences for all their cus-tomers, and cater for everyone. Butthis is only possible with a diverseproduct team. Reflecting the diver-sity of your userbase across thewider team is therefore a hugecompetitive advantage to thosecompanies that make it a priority.

Let’s take Amazon’s artificial-intelligence-powered Rekognitionservice as an example. It cameunder fire after it incorrectlymatched pictures of US Congressmembers to mugshots of sus-pected criminals, and was calledout as potentially damaging tocommunities of colour.

This is a symptom of an uncon-scious bias that is holding productdevelopment back around theworld. Producing facial recognitiontools that match a diverse populus

is a challenge. Doing so without aproduct team that reflects all con-sumers? Nearly impossible.

Unconscious bias is deeply em-bedded in society, as numerous ac-ademic studies have shown. Notonly does this impact our dailythoughts, processes and actions,but this also has an inevitable im-pact on the work that we do, aswell as the projects we work on.

Eliminating unconscious bias

completely is an epic – and somewould say impossible – undertak-ing. However, for technology busi-nesses, mitigating this issue can beas simple as introducing a diverseteam from multiple social and eco-nomic backgrounds.

For product teams, data shouldbe at the heart of all decision mak-ing. So a key part of our role is tointerpret this data, and evaluatethe opportunities at hand.

In this process, it is easy for engi-neers to become abstracted fromtheir audience, especially when aproduct needs to be delivered in alimited timeframe, and turningnumbers on a screen into tangiblehuman experiences can be a chal-lenge in itself.

But becoming more customer-centric should be a goal that all or-ganisations strive for – and it isdiversity that holds the key.

£Claire Vo is senior vice president ofproduct management at Optimizely.

Businesses must wake up to unconsciousbias in their product development teams

Claire Vo

FORUM

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7 NOVEMBER 2019

CANNABIS has long been partof traditional medicine inAsia. In Japan, the earliesttraces can be found as farback as 8,000 BC – this may be

the earliest ever recorded. It is only since the mid-twentieth

century that usage has become heavilyrestricted, due to changing westernopinions and the enforcement of UNdrug treaties. As a result, attitudesacross Asia have now become some ofthe most conservative in the world.

However, that stance is beginning tosoften. Thailand’s recent legalisationof medical cannabis represents a wa-tershed moment for the continent asthey followed the lead of South Korea,who surprised many to become thefirst east Asian country to legalisemedical cannabis in November 2018.

Experts now predict that other coun-tries in the region will follow suit andlegalise the plant for medicinal pur-poses. Prohibition Partners estimatesthat by 2024 the legal cannabis mar-ket in Asia – which is home to morethan half the world’s population –could be worth upwards of $8.5bn.

And it’s estimated that Japan andChina could share 90 per cent of thismarket – even though conservative at-titudes in the two countries have be-come predominant, with laws that arestill far stricter than in Europe or theUS. This is evidenced by comparingrecreational usage, where only 1.4 percent of people aged between 15 and 64in Japan have ever tried cannabis, com-pared to 29 per cent in the UK and 40per cent in the US and Canada.

So why is the Japanese governmentnow looking to heed the WorldHealth Organisation’s proposal that

cannabis be reclassified to reflect themounting evidence of its medical ben-efits? It is not because of any changein Japan’s conservative values – it is in-stead an economic imperative.

For a while now, Japan has been fac-ing a financially draining national cri-sis that Prime Minister Shinzo Abewants to avert. The reason is thatJapan’s senior citizens currently enjoythe world’s longest life expectancy, liv-ing for 85 years on average. This meansthat 33 per cent of the population isnow over the age of 60, and that is pro-jected to reach 40 per cent by 2060.

In fact, annual Japanese healthcareexpenditure grew at a pace 40 timesfaster than the economy from 2000 to2016 – the region’s spending onhealthcare is estimated to reach $2.7trillion by 2020. For a country with ashrinking number of taxpayers andthe highest national debt in the world(235.96 per cent of its GDP), treating

them all is becoming unaffordable.It’s also why many now expect Japan

to become one of the largest medicalcannabis markets in the world withinthe next decade. Prohibition Partners’report says that this market couldreach $800m by 2024.

The advantages of doing so are obvi-ous. Faced with the dilemma whereadvances in medical treatments con-tinue to put further strain on univer-sal healthcare systems around theworld, medical cannabis is an inex-pensive and effective alternative tomany treatments, especially as it isnow widely viewed as a non-toxic andnon-addictive substitute for priceyprescription drugs.

And signs indicate that Japan’s polit-ical leaders are aware of this. In 2016,the use of cannabidiol oil (CBD) be-came legal and the market has almostdoubled in size year-on-year. In 2018,the government approved a clinicaltrials for Epidiolex, a cannabis com-pound that helps treat epilepsy, andabout 40 farmers have been grantedlicences to grow plants so further re-search can be conducted into CBD.

If laws are relaxed further, Japan canthen attract the expertise of foreigncannabis firms, ironically from thesame western nations that originallyconvinced it to demonise marijuana.

Within a few short years, this legaland cultural transformation couldherald a vibrant multi-billion dollardomestic Japanese medical cannabismarket that is open and accessible,making for another curious tale inthe cannabis comeback.

£Marc Davis is president of CapitalMarkets Media.

Marc Davis

DEBATE

Traders have traditionally been used tocompile and adjust odds, as well asmanage financial risk. Thanks totechnology and increased access todata, betting opportunities have grownrapidly in recent years.

As artificial intelligence continues torevolutionise the industry, some arguethat trading could become an entirelyautomated process, ruling out theneed for traders.

But there is a different approach.Technology struggles to handle allqualitative factors – such as playerinjuries or the weather in sportstrading, for example. These elements,from a calculation perspective orwithout real-time data points, affectprobabilities and prices.

Data providers that hire specialist

experts, data scientists, andmathematicians, and combine thiswith cutting-edge technology, are able to take a more quality approach to trading.

Automation has undoubtedly come along way, but evolved, expert humantraders will always be vital in managingthe exceptions when it comes totechnology-driven systems.

£Darren Small is managing director oftrading services at Sportradar.

Are professional tradersbecoming obsolete?Trading as we know it is certainlybecoming obsolete. Financialinstruments will always be traded, butthe traditional isolated trading modelwe know today will soon be consignedto the past.

Platforms that connect individualswanting to trade in the financial spaceare now the future. We’re witnessing inreal time the transition from tradingalone to trading with friends to auto-copying or “managed accounts”. The simple premise for this evolution isto gain exposure to profitability.

People are hunting for help from thebest traders, and the model of isolatedtrading will soon be gone. We are nowseeing brokers report up to 70 per centof trade volume from non-traditional

point-and-click traders. This trend hasbeen amplified by the change inEuropean margin requirements.

Restrictions on trade volumes haveled new entrants to look for precisiontools, and with no capacity for trial anderror, users are now turning to systemswith a proven track record to trade forthem. This is here to stay.

£Mike Read is chief executive and co-founder of Pelican Trading.

The next stage of the cannabiscomeback will happen in Japan

By 2024, the legalcannabis market inAsia could be worthupwards of $8.5bn

MIKE READ

YES

DARREN SMALL

NO

Certified Distribution from 27/05/2019 till30/06/2019 is 85,617

Mattereum is a London fintechstartup that knows how to getphysical assets on the blockchain,

securely audited and correctly accountedfor. They see blockchain is a tool forenabling trade: not just for decentralizingfinance, but for managing supply chainsand bringing digital methods to bear on thereal world.

Their first product, the Mattereum AssetPassport, provides a legal and technicalframework for pre-auditing physical assets,and putting those audited assets on theblockchain. An item - initially memorabilia,but in theory any asset class from art toindustrial components - has expert opinionsfrom people in the know. Their assertionsabout the asset are tied to indemnificationsor insurance policies in case of error. As theMattereum team joke, “it’s true or you cansue!”

The Asset Passport directly parallels thework done by Self Sovereign Digital Identityfirms like Sovrin, uPort, or London’s own

IDChainz on identifying people for theblockchain ecosystem, but adds an aspectof “skin in the game” to get objectverification experts like curators, assayers,valuation professionals and others to bringtheir expertise into the blockchain space.Asset tokenization companies, as well assupply chain finance firms like SweetBridge,rely on secure and correct physical assetrecords on chain too. Matterum’s hugepotential has generated a lively buzz amongboth blockchain and traditional VC firms on

16 TUESDAY 6 AUGUST 2019FEATURE CITYAM.COM

What was the biggest aha mo-ment? A simple way to explainBlockchain without getting

buried in cryptography and deep tech.The example is easy to understand andshare - and it is an explanation that a lotof blockchain pros will absolutely hate!

A Blockchain is an Excel sheet withprotected cells and potentially somemacros. Lots of unrelated people haveidentical copies of the Excel sheet. Anysingle individual can update the Excelsheet, but only one at a time. And that’s it.

So now let’s take that apart.“A Blockchain is an Excel sheet...” You may have heard Blockchain re-

ferred to as a ledger. Ledger’s contain in-formation related to businesstransactions. In a Blockchain, you canrecord data related to verification, trans-fer and transformation of an asset. Andyou can query a blockchain to track andtrace and asset. Each record in ablockchain will include a transaction ID,timestamp, source, destination andunits of value transferred. You can putthe same information into a single rowin an Excel sheet. You can select severalrows in the Excel sheet (several transac-tions) and agree that this group of rowsbe called a block.

“...with protected cells…”An Excel sheet allows for cells to be

protected using a password. This meansthat cells are still readable, but that youcan no longer change, edit, delete oramend the contents of these cells.Blockchains work in much the sameway in that once information has beenwritten into the Blockchain you can nolonger edit, delete or amend the infor-mation. In Blockchain core principleswe refer to this as the data as being im-mutable.

“Lots of unrelated people have identi-cal copies of the Excel sheet.”

This is not the same a Google Drivewhere many people have access to thesame information. Instead, we are talk-ing about multiple people having iden-tical copies of the Excel sheet. In thesame way, multiple people have a copyof the data in the blockchain. InBlockchain principles we describe thisas being distributed. Unlike a classic

database run by a single entity, like abank, multiple people have a completecopy of all of the transactions in theblockchain.

The more people who have a copy ofthe blockchain, the more secure theblockchain. Why? Because it becomes in-creasingly difficult for the data to be cor-rupted either unintentionally orintentionally by a bad actor. Everyonecan see everyone else’s copy of the

blockchain and then come to a consen-sus as to the current state of theblockchain as well as the validity of anyfuture transactions.

“Any single individual can update theExcel sheet, but only one at a time”

Anyone in the network has the right toadd a new block of transactions to theExcel sheet. In blockchain principles, werefer to this as being decentralised. In ablockchain, there is no central authority

Designed byPhill Snelling, Bowater Media

CITY A.M.’SCRYPTO INSIDER

Crypto A.M. shines its Spotlighton Mattereum

JAMES BOWATER

PARTNER CONTENT

Our series on AI, Blockchain, Cryptoassets, DLT and Tokenisation

Gupta has quite atrack record in theblockchain space:project managing

the Ethereum launch

BLOCKCHAINEXPLAINED 101

anything and register it, and it thenbecomes unassailable." Shatner has boldambitions for the blockchain space!

Vinay Gupta, CEO of Mattereum says “Iwant to create a world in which physicalthings tell us their own stories, can besearched like the web, bought, sold,optioned, composed - physical things whichwork like both data and financialinstruments. Intelligent search for precisephysical objects will revolutionizemanufacturing, particularly in fields likeaerospace and medical.” Gupta has quite atrack record in the blockchain space: he wasthe project manager for the Ethereumlaunch (and before that a refugee campdesigner - his hexayurt shelter is all over theBurning Man festival.)

The booming market for tokenizing assetslike real estate shows how big the appetite isfor the blockchain to break into the realworld. Mattereum’s vision of a world inwhich all manufactured goods have ablockchain “digital twin” that works like anyother blockchain financial asset iscompelling. Gupta adds “one day everyimportant purchase a person makes willhave a blockchain register for guarantees,maintenance, resale, insurance, all built intothe same digital twin. We will look back andwonder why we ever did it any other way.”

Merging the digital and the physical worldtogether has a big future. The trend can befound everywhere, from virtual reality to thefourth industrial revolution. The future isintegrated.

both sides of the atlantic.Screen legend William Shatner’s Third

Millennia is a consumer goods andHollywood memorabilia authentication

startup - and the first live user ofMattereum’s technology. In a recentinterview with Forbes, Shatner said of thenew partnership "we can authenticate

Global uncertainty seems to be the themedominating headlines and socialmedia streams. The list is alarmingly

long as the crisis in Iran continues withanother tanker being seized; India hassignificantly ramped up tensions withPakistan by revoking Kashmir’s specialautonomous status cutting off allcommunications and deploying 10,000 troops -let’s not forget that Pakistan and India are both nuclear powers;the 30-year old Intermediate Range Nuclear Treaty between theUS and Russia abandoned, the US-China trade war is escalatingwidening to include currency devaluation; Venezuelan inflationhas exceeded one million percent and the Hong Kong protestsare spooking investors with China almost certainly about to losepatience before a totalitarian crack down on the ‘SpecialAdministrative Region’.

What does any of this have to do with the Crypto Market?Since last week’s Crypto AM and at the time of writing, Bitcoin(BTC) is up 24% at US$11,727.50; Ethereum (ETH) is up 12% atUS$234.76; Ripple (XRP) is at US$0.3283; Binance (BNB) is atUS$28.23 and Cardano (ADA) is at US$0.05782. Overall MarketCap is up circa 18% at US$310.35bn (data source:www.CryptoCompare.com)

Yesterday I spoke with my friend Naeem Aslam, ThinkMarkets’ Chief Analyst, to get his feel: “Bitcoin has soared over200% year to date, outpacing all the top three coins by a hugemargin and I think it is highly likely that Bitcoin could easily topthis year’s high of $14,000. The bitcoin price had several battleswith the 50-day moving average during the past few weeks, butfinally the bulls have conquered this battle field.”

On the new currency war. “The Chinese Yuan crossed the levelof $7 for the first time and this is only because China clearlywants to devalue its currency. Donald Trump will have nochoice but to actually retaliate against this action and he will doeverything in his power to not let Beijing to win this war. Theescalation in the currency war means that the Fed will have toadopt ultra-dovish monetary policy, odds for another interestrate cut have jumped, and the only direction for the dollarindex is to the downside. We all know what does this mean forBitcoin: it is going to explode and continue to move higher.”

As I mentioned last week the first official London meetup ofBinance took place with Founder Changpeng ‘CZ’ Zhao takingcentre stage reinforcing how approachable he is - I believe hemet and shook hands individually with every single one of the300 attendees - it was extremely impressive! For now Binance’sonly footprint in the U.K. is Jersey There are no immediate plansfor a London office although, post Brexit, who knows? What hemade clear to me is that CZ is committed to spending muchmore of his time in Europe.

Vinay Gupta, Founder & CEO of Mattereum

erate on the contents of the blockchain.They must be called explicitly and theymay have connections to services in thereal world. As many of the transactionson the blockchain are underpinned bybusiness agreements, the code may re-flect the terms, obligations and commit-ments written in a real-world contractand they may operate in an automatedfashion - hence the name smart con-tracts.

So a blockchain is just a shared Excelsheet with protected cells which might

have some macros. You can even use this example to eval-

uate opportunities or projects withinyour enterprise. All you need to do is askthe question:

“Would I do that in an Excel sheetwhich I had to share with lots of peo-ple?”

It really focuses your attention onwhat data, how much data, and thevalue of sharing that data between mul-tiple distrusting parties. With this inmind, many more productive conversa-tions are possible within your enter-prise.

James Bowater in conversation with TroyNorcross, Co-Founder of BlockchainRookies and Crypto AM regularcontributor. Get in touch with him throughinfo@blockchainrookies.com / Twitter@igetblockchain

IMPORTANT INFORMATION: THE VIEWS ANDOPINIONS PROVIDED BY CITY A.M.'S CRYPTOINSIDER AND IN THE CRYPTO A.M. SECTIONSHOULD NOT BE TAKEN AS INVESTMENT ORFINANCIAL ADVICE. ALWAYS CONSULT WITHYOUR FINANCIAL ADVISOR.

17TUESDAY 6 AUGUST 2019 FEATURECITYAM.COM

with the exclusive right to update the in-formation in the blockchain.

In order to prevent conflicts, only oneindividual is able to update theblockchain at a time and once they com-plete the process, they send an updateto everyone who holds a copy of theExcel sheet so that they can update theirown copy. The same is true inblockchain, anyone can add a new blockof transactions and then advertise the

update to the rest of the network.“...and potentially with some macros.”Some Excel sheets include macros.

These are small pieces of software code.Macros operate on the contents of theExcel sheet. They have to be triggered torun and they may connect to variousservices in the outside world. SomeBlockchains, not all, have the ability tosupport smart contracts. Smart con-tracts are small pieces of code which op-

In association with@CityAm_CryptoE: CryptoInsider@cityam.com

As an avid believer in blockchaintechnologies, I’m constantlythinking of innovative ways to

utilise this technology. As you’ll knowfrom the other pieces I have written forCrypto AM, I do not think blockchain isthe solution for everything.

I play ice hockey at a semi-profes-sional level, I’m actually in NewZealand playing for the Skycity Stam-pede right now. I also studied SportsPerformance at the University of Bathbefore life led me to blockchain. Eversince then I have been hypothesisingways that I could draw together my twopassions – sport and technology.

This led me to read about the utilisationof blockchain technology in dopingwithin sports. This, of course, is not myoriginal idea but it is certainly somethingthat piqued my interest and having re-searched the subject I believe there aresome serious legs in this.

WADA (World Anti Doping Authority)analysed over 300,000 athlete samples in2016. This in itself is not a large number,and as a standalone data point would notlead me to believe that this needs to beput onto a blockchain. However, this issport and there are vast variables thatreach much farther than what is on thesurface.

On the world stage there is a hugeamount of equity in sentiment and howsports are perceived by the general pub-lic.

Cycling? Doping. Russian athletes?Drug cheats.

Only recently in Australia, there hasbeen a scandal surrounding Olympicswimmer Shayna Jack and how she hadtested positive, but it was kept underwraps until a decision had been made byWADA. This is due to an internal ASADA(Australian Sports Anti Doping Authority)process but the point remains. Thereneeds to be more transparency aroundthis.

Sticking with swimming, China’s Sun

Yang is at the heart of another dopingscandal, having already served a ban 2014he is set to appear in front of a court ofarbitration accused of destroying hisblood samples with a hammer. Yet he isstill allowed to compete and, what’smore, is that Brit Duncan Scott receiveda warning for his conduct when he re-fused to acknowledge him on thepodium.

I firmly believe that you should be sus-pended from competition until you areproven innocent.

Where does blockchain fit into this?Many sports are in turmoil with athletesfailing drug tests at an alarming rate.With modern technology, both in termsof testing and also in terms of spreadingnews of failure, I am amazed athletes stilldo it. But they do, and here we are. Sportas a whole is fighting an uphill battle toremain scrupulous in the eyes of the pub-lic, and blockchain can be used to createa globally shared inventory of all athletesand samples taken that can be shared se-curely and cannot be tampered with.

WADA goes to great to lengths to ensurethat they maintain their integrity, to theextent of making press releases abouttheir tamper-proof sample containers, butthat is not to say that on a state level theserecords could not be doctored by the localauthorities. In 2016 the RUSADA wasfound to be tampering with their sampleswithin a WADA approved facility.

This is where the tricky part comesthough, any time there is a bridge be-tween technology and the physical worldthere is an opportunity for tampering.We must trust the data going on to ablockchain for it to be a valid point of ref-erence. We can reduce the risk, but to be-lieve it can be eliminated would be naïve.I haven’t figured this one out yet, but Iwill be watching this space.

Alastair Band, defenceman for SkycityStampede and Partner at Verum Venturesalastair@verum.ventures

The UK’s aspiration to be a world-leading crypto hub received a boostthis week as the Financial Conduct

Authority (FCA) published revisedguidelines on its treatment of cryptoassets.

The guidance, which followed on from adraft proposal published in January and a90-day consultation period with crypto-related businesses and associations,signalled the FCA’s intention to avoidheavy-handed regulation on the trading ofcryptoassets such as bitcoin and ether(ETH). The pragmatic approach waswelcomed by industry body CryptoUK.

In the markets, Bitcoin (BTC) hascontinued to defy bearish expectations. Arally to $9500 ahead of the weekly openprovided strong momentum for the assetto rise more than 23% over the week,surging past $11,000 to trade at the time ofwriting at $11,719. Ether (ETH) alsobenefited from the wave of bullishmomentum. After slipping back below

$200 ahead of the weekly open, ether’svalue grew 10% over the week to trade atthe time of writing at $229. Despite somestrong individual performances, with Tezos(XTZ) for example surging more than 44%,the altcoin market has continued toconsolidate, hovering around a combinedmarket cap of $90 billion. BTC dominancehas increased over the week, currentlysitting at 68%.

Key assets to watch this week includeLitecoin (LTC) and Tron (TRX). Litecoin sawits much-anticipated halving event on 5August, reducing miner rewards from 25 to12.5 LTC per block. With the run up tohalvings usually creating a price surge,litecoin is currently trading at $95, havingreached a high of $146 in June. Tronmeanwhile, maligned in recent weeksfollowing reports of regulatory issues inChina, is due to enhance the capacity of itscontent-sharing platform with the launchof the Sun Network on August 10th.

CRYPTOCOMPARE MARKET VIEW

Blockchain could help scourge of doping in sport

New FCA Guidelines Welcomedby UK Crypto Industry

With so many of these thingsavailable to buy or trade, howcan anyone tell the difference

from one “cryptocurrency” to another?To the purists, a cryptocurrency must

exist on a protocol which is fullydecentralised, permission-less andpublicly accessible. This is the casewith bitcoin. The advantage of havingthese characteristics is thatcryptocurrencies are inherentlycensorship-resistant, unable to have a3rd party assert control over who usesit, and what they chose to do with it.Cryptocurrencies create a completelynew paradigm for money.

As bitcoin’s brand and value hasgrown, there have been many peoplewho have wanted to create their own

project taking advantage of this newtechnological advancement ofBlockchain. Some are forcryptocurrencies and some for tokensto be used for other purposes.

There are now a multitude ofdifferent tokens and coins in differentcategories including privacy coins,dApp tokens, security tokens andnetwork coins. Most recently Libra hasbeen proposed in a white paper fromFacebook. While to the purists, Libracannot be viewed as a truecryptocurrency, as it is neitherpermissionless nor public, it quiteclearly intends to be a digital currencyto be used as a medium of exchangeand value transfer with initial usewithin the Facebook family of

applications.All of these coins and tokens

currently fall under the umbrella ofcryptocurrency. In time, the title willlikely change to the category of DigitalAssets with each entity having a cleardelineation for clarity of purpose.

There are clear ideas as to whatmakes a cryptocurrency over what ismerely a token. Unfortunately, todaythere is not broad agreement in thecommunity, by governments or byindustry. The sooner we get tostandard accepted definitions, thesooner the market can move forward.

Get in touch with usinfo@blockchainrookies.com / Twitter @igetblockchain

CRYPTO A.M. INDUSTRY VOICES

A Blockchain is an Excel sheet with

protected cells and potentially some macros.

Jon Walsh, Associate Partner Blockchain Rookies

WHAT IS ACRYPTOCURRENCY ANYWAY?

CITYAM.COM18 TUESDAY 6 AUGUST 2019SPORT

SPORTHosts left withtough questionsafter painful firstTest thrashing,writes Felix Keith

IN THE END England surrenderedthe first Ashes Test meekly. The251-run margin of defeat wasunimaginable on the opening day,when Australia were reeling on

122-8 at a raucous Edgbaston. Andunimaginable for good reason: Eng-land have made history, registeringthe biggest loss of any Test side to haveclaimed a first-innings lead of 90 runsor more.

England did, of course, run upagainst the best batsman in the world,who played his best ever Test match toscore a match-swinging 286 runs over11 hours at the crease. Steve Smith wasa very worthy man of the match.

Also, amid the Birmingham gloom,there were some positives. A grittymaiden Test century for Rory Burns toease the perennial opener issue, atleast for now. A 17th Test match five-wicket haul for Stuart Broad. An all-round impressive contribution fromChris Woakes.

But really, considering the stage, thesignificance of the occasion and theposition they found themselves in,this result can’t be framed as anythingother than a crushing defeat.

With a 1-0 deficit and an in-form andfired-up opposition to face at Lord’s on14 August, the repercussions will begreat.

ANDERSON BLOW“It was hard losing Jimmy early on,but these things happen.” That washow captain Joe Root attempted toplay down Jimmy Anderson’s calf in-jury which significantly weakenedEngland’s attack just eight overs intothe match and could force a rethink oftheir strategy over the series.

England haven’t put a timeframe onAnderson’s return but, whatever theprognosis, their bowling attack, whichis also without the injured MarkWood, will be tested.

Much was made of England’s deci-sion to insist on a batch of Dukes ballslike those used against India last sum-mer. But the fact they didn’t offermuch swing played into Australia’shands.

Whoever replaces Anderson – be itJofra Archer or Sam Curran – Englandwill hope Lord’s helps them swing thenew ball.

DENLY ON THIN ICEWhile Burns’ 133 was a very welcomeboost to England’s top order prob-lems, Joe Denly’s place requires ac-tion. Root moved up a place to No3 toprotect the 33-year-old, but to no avail,with unconvincing scores of 18 and 11– alongside ineffectual leg-spin – leav-ing him open to the chop.

There is always an argument that se-lectors can act too early, that frequentchange creates instability, but the na-

ture of Denly’s performances suggesthe doesn’t have what it takes to makethe step up.

With Australia recharging their bat-tery of fast bowlers over the nextweek, with the potential for a freshMitchell Starc to be unleashed, who-ever does bat No4 in the second Testcan expect to be tested.

MERCURIAL MOEENMoeen Ali is the ultimate confidenceplayer. He is the top wicket-taker inTest cricket over the last 12 monthsand yet after one poor game he lookslikely to lose his place in England’sside.

While Australian off-spinner NathanLyon showed his credentials, bowlingbrilliantly to take nine wickets, includ-ing 6-49 in the second innings on ahelpful Edgbaston pitch, Moeenlooked shot, drained entirely of the at-tributes England want from him.

His batting has fallen off a cliff and,at the moment, his bowling is farfrom pulling its weight either.

Somerset’s Left-arm spinner JackLeach, who was man of the matchagainst Ireland – albeit for his batting– could return to the side at Lord’s,the scene of his brilliant innings of 92,allowing Moeen some time out of thespotlight.

FRIED MINDS Worryingly, Denly and Moeen are farfrom the only two out of form. If theyare going to bounce back and comefrom behind to win the Ashes, Eng-land need vast improvements fromthe core of their team, which has gonefrom being a dependable powerhouseto a collapse waiting to happen.

“It gives us a chance to get away, re-group, and make sure this doesn’thave a hangover effect,” said Root ofthe nine-day gap until the next game.

World Cup heroes Jos Buttler andJonny Bairstow, who contributed 20runs between them in four innings,must use the time well.

WITH a $15m top prize forthe winner, the FedExCup play-offs, whichbegin this week at theNorthern Trust and con-

clude with the Tour Championshiplater this month, have become a hugeevent in the golf calendar.

The format of the competitiondoesn’t always make it easy to followbut the rewards on offer ensure topquality fields for the three play-offevents which represent the climax tothe PGA Tour season. So let’s sit backand enjoy it.

World No1 Brooks Koepka and RoryMcIlroy occupy the top places in theFedEx Cup standings and there’s anintriguing battle in prospect betweenthose two.

US PGA champion Koepka is in thestrongest shape while McIlroy has

also had a great year albeit withoutending his wait for another Major.

For others, the play-offs offer achance to end the season on a highnote. Justin Rose won the FedEx Cuplast year and repeating that featwould be a great way to finish 2018-19; Tiger Woods will hope to reach theTour Championship and defend thecrown he won so memorably in 2018;Francesco Molinari has done nothingsince his final-round collapse at the

Masters, which is a shame; DustinJohnson has had a so-so year by hisvery high standards.

I fancy Tommy Fleetwood to bebursting to do something thisweek, having gone so close atThe Open last time out. Hewas also runner-up at the2018 US Open at ShinnecockHills which, like this week’stournament at Liberty Na-tional, was held a stone’sthrow from New YorkCity. Open winnerShane Lowry, mean-while, has had timefor partying and re-flection and he’ll nowbe excited to get back to work asa Major champion.

Playing in your local area can goone of two ways: the presence of

friends, family and supporters every-where you look can create extra pres-sure, or the whole experience canspur you on.

For 26-year-old JT Poston, wholanded his first win on the PGATour at the Wyndham Champi-onship on Sunday in his native

North Carolina, it wascertainly the latter.

And if that wasn’tspecial enough, Pos-

ton did so withoutdropping a shot, becom-ing the first man to go

bogey-free on his way to aPGA Tour title since thegreat Lee Trevino in 1974. What a way to make your

breakthrough.England’s Georgia Hall couldn’t de-

fend her title at the Women’s BritishOpen but the event did see the emer-gence of another exciting new talentin Hinako Shibuno.

Despite this being her first Majorand her first tournament outside ofher native Japan, the 20-year-old sawoff more experienced rivals with anincredible back nine of 31. Well doneto her.

Finally, I was deeply saddened bythe passing of Gordon Brand Jnr lastweek.

We spent 40 years on tour togetherand he became one of my dearestfriends. Rest in peace, Gordon.

Sam Torrance OBE is a multiple Ryder Cup-winning golfer and media commentator.Follow him @torrancesam

Sit back and enjoy big guns doing battle for $15m FedEx CupGOLF COMMENT

SamTorrance

Justin Rose won theFedEx Cup last year

ENGLAND ONTHEIR KNEES

19TUESDAY 6 AUGUST 2019 SPORTCITYAM.COM

MAGUIRE JOINS UNITED INWORLD RECORD £80M DEAL£Manchester United yesterdaycompleted the signing of Englanddefender Harry Maguire for a world-record fee of £80m from Leicester City.The 26-year-old, who has agreed a six-year deal with United, eclipses Virgil vanDijk, who cost Liverpool £75m fromSouthampton in January 2018, as theworld’s most expensive defender.“From my conversations with themanager, I am excited about the visionand plans he has for the team,” he said.

TOO DARN HOT RETIREDAFTER SUSSEX STAKES WIN£Too Darn Hot, winner of the QatarSussex Stakes at Goodwood, has beenretired after sustaining a career-endingleg injury. The two-year-old son ofDubawi, trained by John Gosden,underwent surgery on a hairlinefracture and will now stand at stud forthe 2020 season. “The injury is not lifethreatening and he should make a fullrecovery,” said Simon Marsh, racing andbloodstock manager for owners Lordand Lady Lloyd-Webber.

BELGIAN CYCLIST, 22, DIESAFTER CRASH IN POLAND£Belgian cyclist Bjorg Lambrecht hasdied aged 22 after crashing on the Tourof Poland. Lambrecht was taken tohospital by helicopter following anaccident 60 miles from the end of stagethree from Chorzow to Zabrze but laterdied. “The biggest tragedy possible thatcould happen to the family, friends andteammates of Bjorg has happened...Rest in peace Bjorg,” said his team,Lotto Soudal, in a statement yesterday.

MAUPAY JOINS BRIGHTON ASPALACE SNAP UP CAHILL£Brighton have bolstered their attackby signing Brentford striker NealMaupay for £20m. Maupay, who scored25 goals for the Bees last season,penned a four-year deal with theSeagulls yesterday. Meanwhile, CrystalPalace have signed defender GaryCahill on a two-year contract after the33-year-old was released by Chelsea.

KONTA BEATEN IN CANADAON WIMBLEDON RETURN£Johanna Konta was beaten byUkrainian teenager Dayana Yastremskaat the Rogers Cup in Canada yesterday.The British No1 lost 6-3, 6-2 in one hourand 21 minutes to the 19-year-old in herfirst match since her defeat by BarboraStrycova in the quarter-finals atWimbledon last month.

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AT THE end of last season Uefapresident Aleksander Ceferincalled on Fifa to introduce newconcussion protocols, statingthey “need updating to protect

both the players and doctors”.It came after a year in which a number

of footballers, including Tottenham’sJan Vertonghen in a Champions Leaguesemi-final, were allowed to play on aftersuffering a blow to the head before laterbeing removed from the field.

Goalkeepers David Ospina and An-thony Lopes and defender Fabian Schar– who was completely knocked out –were all also allowed to continue despitehead traumas before being substitutedduring matches last season.

And while the medical staff involvedhave come in for criticism, the need forfootball to introduce new concussionregulations has become increasingly ap-parent as the Premier League preparesfor its big kick-off this weekend.

The Football Association and worldgoverning body Fifa’s current guidelinesdictate that players who lose conscious-ness should not return to the field, butthat is only a symptom in around 10 percent of concussion cases.

Additionally, it is not a protocol sharedby European governing body Uefa, high-lighting the lack of universal legislationthat must be adhered to.

Fifa did, however, adopt Uefa’s three-minute assessment policy for the 2018World Cup. But during that tourna-ment Morocco fielded defender NordinAmrabat in a match five days after hewas hospitalised and lost six hours ofmemory. That incident came just amonth after then-Liverpool goalkeeperLoris Karius suffered an undiagnosedconcussion midway through the Cham-pions League final.

CONCUSSION SUBSTITUTIONSThe pressure has since ramped up onFifa to introduce new laws to protectplayers from serious, long-term damage.Temporary substitutions is one solutionsupported by brain injury associationHeadway. “Assessing a player for threeminutes does not allow medical staff tomake a reliable diagnosis,” says Head-way chief executive Peter McCabe.

“Football should trial temporary con-cussion substitutions that would allowlonger off-pitch assessments to be con-ducted. It’s also imperative that inde-

pendent doctors, rather than clubmedics, should make the ultimate deci-sion as to whether or not a player is fitto continue.”

It’s a system that other professionalsports have already implemented.

A head injury assessment (HIA) was in-troduced in Rugby Union following the2015 World Cup, allowing a team or in-dependent matchday doctor to conducta 10-minute off-field assessment while atemporary substitute replaces them.

Anyone displaying symptoms of con-cussion is permanently removed fromthe game, while all players who need as-sessment must be re-evaluated withinthree hours of the final whistle andagain two days later.

In NFL, a sport that faced multi-milliondollar litigation over is treatment ofhead injuries, the rules are now evenmore rigorous. Any player showing con-fusion, amnesia or a lack of conscious-ness is permanently removed from thefield. Players involved in an incidentwith the head, which can be identifiedby the team doctor, an independent doc-tor, or “spotters” with access to video re-

plays specifically designated for thisrole, must undergo a comprehensive as-sessment with a doctor and unaffiliatedneurotrauma consultant.

NEW PROTOCOLS?Even in a non-contact sport like cricketwhere concussion is less common, thecounty game last year implementedrules that allow an on-field assessmentfor five minutes with the possibility touse a concussion substitute if deemednecessary. The laws were changed afterresearch revealed that around 15-20players a season had suffered a concus-sion due to being hit in the head by theball and the international game hassince followed suit.

Repeated blows to the head can lead tothe onset of chronic traumatic en-cephalopathy (CTE), and a recent studyled by the University of Glasgow discov-ered that former footballers and rugbyplayers with dementia were six timesmore likely to suffer from CTE, revealingthe multitude of long-term brain ill-nesses that head traumas can cause.

There are additional concerns about

Football slow tochange despitewarnings, writesMichael Searles

the lack of time players spend recover-ing, with current guidelines advisingthem to take six days off.

A study published in the AmericanJournal of Sports Medicine last monthrevealed Premier League players missedjust 10.9 days, or 0.6 games, on averagefollowing a concussion, compared with37 days, or 7.3 games, for top-flight foot-ballers in the US.

It also revealed Premier League players’performances suffered a dip followingtheir return that the US players didn’t,and it is perhaps owing to the concus-sion storm that embroiled the NFL thatAmerican sports appear to be taking theissue more seriously.

Fifa is understood to be looking intonew protocols, but declined to specifywhat they might look like or when theymight come into effect.

“Fifa regularly monitors the situationof head injuries, maintaining constantcontact with current and on-going stud-ies on this matter and reviewing ourprotocols,” a spokesperson said, refer-ring to their current “when in doubt, sitthe player out” recommendation.

HEADINJURYPOLICYSTILLA SOREPOINT