Business & Tech
The latest stories from independent business & tech media.
Sports Direct brands ASA as “out-of-touch”, after regulator banned ad
Sports Direct, part of the Fraser’s group, has responded to the ASA banning one of its ads branding the regulator “out-of-touch”. The retailer has stated that it will be contesting the decision and considers the decision “fundamentally wrong”.
London Tube closes the 5G gap with streets above
Mobile signal below ground beats the citywide average, Ookla says
Palo Alto marks record $11.5bn year with another AI acquisition
Console joins Palo Alto's long list of acquisitions as it leans into agentic security.
Dell's bonkers earnings show AI cash spigots remain wide open
“Is this driven by a combination of pricing and prebuys rather than real demand?”
Budget speculation risks pushing clients into costly mistakes, AJ Bell warns
Financial advisers could face a surge in clients looking to make potentially damaging financial decisions ahead of the Budget as speculation over possible tax rises intensifies, AJ Bell has warned.
FNZ raises $450m from existing institutional shareholders
FNZ has secured US$450m (£337m) in new equity funding from its existing institutional shareholders to support its transformation programme and plans to return to profitable growth.
Firms still struggling to prove Consumer Duty outcomes, CII finds
Financial advice and insurance firms are still struggling to demonstrate that customers are receiving good outcomes under the Consumer Duty, despite becoming more confident in their board reporting, the Chartered Insurance Institute (CII) has found.
UK goes shopping for homegrown AI with £100M procurement scheme
Startups invited to tackle NHS, defense, compute, and agent security challenges while Whitehall's own adoption remains patchy
Leader: Does simplified advice make financial sense for advice firms?
My aunt and uncle used to run their own business, making and selling children’s clothes. I got lots of freebies until I was about eight, which was great. But then the rent for their retail unit and associated charges rapidly increased, eventually becoming unaffordable. My
Ikea invests €1.2bn in price cuts
Ikea is looking to make home furnishing more affordable, as many people continue to feel pressure from higher living costs, with a cost-cutting initiative across Europe. In the UK, prices will be reduced on hundreds of home furnishing products and accessories.
Northern Ireland adds £15M to Fujitsu education deal without competition
Japanese supplier remains in place despite scrutiny over its Horizon role
UK cyber bill targets AI users, not the vendors building it
Ministers reject proposed red lines and emergency shutdown powers, pointing instead to voluntary safeguards
UK digital ID may be dead, but its legacy IT problem lives on
Spending watchdog says fragmented data and inconsistent standards would constrain any future attempt
Royal London: When might it make sense to defer the state pension
Deferring the state pension is one of those decisions that sounds simple but is rarely straightforward in practice. Clients often hear that delaying their claim means a bigger pension for life and assume that must be a good outcome. Sometimes it is. But deferral is
Aldi Barnet turns pink for Barbie Aldimania Dreamland Doll launch
Aldi has given its Barnet, London, store a makeover to celebrate the launch of the new Barbie Aldimania Dreamland Doll.
Transport firms put brakes on September price rises, warns ONS
Just 9.7 per cent of UK transport and storage businesses expect to raise prices in September, down sharply from 15.8 per cent in August and the lowest level of any major sector, according to new ONS data.
Primark opens 500th store in Naples, Italy
Primark has opened its 500th store in Naples, Italy, at La Cartiera shopping centre.
Tape still isn’t dead, but shipments slipped by 16 exabytes in 2025
LTO program is confident this is a glitch, not terminal unspooling
Anthropic promises zero data retention – but customers must check it worked
More compliance-friendly stance could boost appeal of Fable
Lush’s Hannah Johnston-Cree goes behind the scenes of Super Mario collab
Lush’s Super Mario Bros collaboration is nominated for Brand Partnership of the Year at the 2026 RG Excellence Awards. Hannah Johnston-Cree, chief marketing lead for Lush collaborations takes us behind the scenes of the partnership.
Arm in the enterprise is at least three years away, says Broadcom software boss
Boden sales climb as US growth boosts profits
British fashion brand Boden has posted a 7 per cent rise in group turnover to £387.1m, for the year to 27 December 2025, supported by strong growth in the US and an uplift in profitability.
Orange becomes first merchant in France to offer Wero for bill payments
Orange has become the first merchant in France to offer subscription bill payment with Wero, a solution developed by the bank-backed European Payments Initiative (EPI) and initially designed for payments between individuals.
How SME retailers are turning opportunity into growth
Retail sales may be growing, but many small and medium-sized businesses have a mixed view of the economic outlook. A recent Capify Business Confidence Report found that while just 22 per cent of SMEs are confident in the economy, more than half are confident in their own…
Currys boss Alex Baldock confirmed as CEO of Boots
Pharmacy and health retailer Boots have welcomed former Currys group chief executive Alex Baldock to the brand as its new chief executive officer. Baldock has help leadership roles for Shop Direct, Royal Bank of Scotland and Barclays, before leading Currys since 2018.
LeMieux digital director: how app-first loyalty push turned community into commerce
LeMieux is nominated for Digital Initiative of the Year at this year’s RG Excellence Awards. The equestrian brand’s digital and technology director Shaun Loughlin explains why they rejected discount-led loyalty and built a mobile store, rewards platform and community ecosystem…
