As is usually the case in this particular arena, business stories are continually developing and usually at a rate of knots. Therefore, today’s post catches us up with a few stories that we have looked at previously; all of these stories selected today were always going to be end up in a negative, and today’s updates confirm that with news that the Carillion collapse was not what it first seemed (predictably), that Sir Philip Green is continuing his war of words with British Politicians (and one in particular), and that the retailer Toys ‘R’ Us failed in its attempt to save itself. The Carillion Collapse Reveals Predictable Skeletons We have looked at the issue of Carillion on a number of occasions, ranging from the onset of the crisis to the collapse and subsequent call for the Pensions Regulator to much more in clawing-back some of the pension fund that was depleted by the company . Rather predictably on the back of such a large and interconnected collapse, the post-Caril...

Today’s post can be seen as somewhat of a ‘round-up’ of recent news concerning the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). With the FCA featuring considerably in the news recently – amid the obvious cries of ‘what’s new!’ – it is worth discussing these particular elements for the purpose of asking some abstract, potential philosophical questions like ‘what is the role of the regulator in reality ?’. The FCA has figured heavily already here in Financial Regulation Matters , particularly in relation to the regulator’s actions with regards to the ever-increasing debt bubble , and also the conduct of RBS a. in general and b. in relation to the ‘ controversial ’ i.e. potentially criminal ‘ Global Restructuring Group ’ and its systemic destruction of many small businesses. So, in furtherance of these analyses, the following provides ‘updates’, for want of a better term, to the developing progression of the FCA as a leading regulator in the U.K. There are a number of stories recently that ...

Usually here in Financial Regulation Matters , the focus of posts is on the world of business and usually its connection with the world around it – business, rather obviously, is part of a much larger societal picture, particularly in this modern era. The focus of the posts is usually upon business and/or regulatory developments, which are then assessed against a broader backdrop. However, today’s post represents a slight departure from that approach in that it responds to the recent wave of headlines praising corporations for taking a stand against the developing situation in the United States regarding President Trump and his views towards outwardly racist groups. For this post there is only one question that is of concern, and that is whether the praise being showered upon companies like Apple, Spotify, and Go Daddy is correct. The first wave of public, and specifically media praise for companies began after a number of CEO’s left the President’s advisory councils . Before th...