It is becoming increasingly common for businesses to face civil penalties of around £1m or more for breaching UK export control laws. Export control breaches are criminal offences, but the 1979 Customs and Excise Management Act allows HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) to "compound" offences and of
Search: financial focus
STV Studios has secured a £21.4 million deal to acquire Greenbird Media, incorporating its network of 15 independent production companies and increasing the STV Studios' number of labels from nine to 24. The acquisition facilitates STV Studios' expansion with bases in Glasgow and London, and t
Scotland is set to host the 6th edition of its Fintech Festival, which celebrates remarkable achievements in fintech innovation. From September 21 to 12 October 2023, the festival will bring together fintech leaders, innovators, and enthusiasts from the UK, and beyond.
Despite a challenging economic climate, Scottish entrepreneurs remain ambitious, with 46% planning to expand their businesses in 2023, according to recent research from investment firm Rathbones.
Moray West, a significant offshore wind farm development, has secured a £95.5 million loan from Barclays to support the next phase of the project’s construction as part of a wider syndicated £2 billion loan injection which closed in April 2023. Moray West is situated 22km off
Wylie & Bisset has unveiled an array of promotions across various sectors of its organisation including audit, business advisory services, insolvency, payroll, and tax departments. Sandy Hogg and Rory McCall have received promotions to associate director within the external audit team, ack
Scottish business confidence has surged by 28 points to reach a 50% mark in June, revealed by the recent Business Barometer survey from the Bank of Scotland Commercial Banking. This confidence is reflective of firms' optimism in both their individual prospects, which jumped 22 points to 52%, and the
The chairman of Springfield Properties has challenged Stirling Council on the "considerable delays" by planning officials to progress housing at Durieshill. Attending today’s Stirling Council meeting, Sandy Adam made a bold visual statement with an eight-foot figure of a sn
Scotland has witnessed a surge in new businesses, with over 3,200 start-ups registered in May 2023, according to research conducted by R3, the UK's insolvency and restructuring trade body. This figure, obtained from Creditsafe data analysis, was 229 firms higher than the previous month's total of 3,
Edinburgh-based water retailer Business Stream has achieved a record savings of £2.85 million for the country’s public sector this year, elevating the total savings to £6.4m over a three-year period. This was accomplished through the provision of leak detection, water efficiency, a
VAT expert Iain Masterton has warned that escalating costs driven by inflation could jeopardise the survival of smaller businesses by pushing them over the current VAT threshold. As the head of VAT at accountancy and advisory firm CT, Mr Masterton raises concern over the additional VAT bur
Archangels, the Edinburgh-based business angel syndicate, has welcomed Daniel McKiddie as investment manager to its executive team, led by joint managing directors Niki McKenzie and David Ovens. Mr McKiddie, a chartered accountant, will work in tandem with Shaolei McKie, senior investment manager, t
NatWest and Nationwide have announced substantial increases in interest rates, and the withdrawal of several mortgage products.
Scottish hospitality management software company, Hop, has penned a partnership deal with Queensland-based venue management software firm, iVvy. The collaborative venture will provide a comprehensive booking solution for hotels, enabling the sale of large scale events, room packages and food and dri
Smaller firms in Scotland saw record levels of equity investment in 2022, despite difficult economic conditions, according to new research from the British Business Bank. The Bank’s annual Small Business Equity Tracker, published today, showed that equity deals involving small businesses total
