News

UK residents paid out a record amount of inheritance tax in July after the number of coronavirus deaths soared. According to new figures published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), receipts from the 40% death duty hit £571 million in last month, marking the most ever paid in a singl

Scottish businesses face increasing pressure to address environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues but their good intentions in meeting the challenges need to be backed with more robust planning and better reporting, according to a new report by Grant Thornton.

HBOS has reigned supreme in Bestinvest's hall of shame Spot the Dog report which lists the "bad mutts" of the fund management industry. The report uses statistical fund performance data to identify funds that have consistently performed badly compared to their benchmark.

Shepherd and Wedderburn has reported a 4.1% turnover growth to £59.3 million in the year to 30 April 2021, with profits before partner distributions rising 13% to £25.3m. In recognition of the exemplary resilience, adaptability and commitment shown by colleagues to clients during th

Scottish private equity investment rose considerably in the first half of 2021, as investor confidence returned and vendors brought their assets to market, according to new analysis from KPMG. The volume of deals across Scotland in H1 rose 54.5% against H1 2020 levels and 13.3% compared to H2 2020 l

Aberdein Considine has been acknowledged as one of Scotland’s top mortgage brokers following the publication of the longlist categories in the 2021 Scottish Mortgage Awards. The firm, which has a network of independent mortgage brokers across the country, was nominated in five different catego

PayPal has announced the launch of a new service enabling its customers in the UK to buy, hold and sell cryptocurrency with PayPal. The payment services company said that the new initiative, which will be rolled out this week, will allow customers to cryptocurrency for consumers in a secure and

The Scottish Government has announced a multi-million-pound package of support has been invested to help tourism and hospitality businesses recover from the coronavirus pandemic. Delivered in the first 100 days of the new Scottish Government, the support is part of a wider £129 million investm

A Canadian soldier who was accused of drugging her comrades with cannabis-laced cupcakes at a live-fire training exercise has been found guilty of various offences. Sandra Cogswell was convicted by a military judge on eight counts of administering a noxious substance as well as one of behaving in a

Michael Richards, an environmental scientist who participated in Britain’s biggest-ever tax fraud, has had ten years added to his jail sentence for failing to pay back £11 million. Mr Ricahards operated the investment scheme which was used by comedians, sports stars and relatives of poli

The Scottish Building Society, the world’s oldest building society, has been announced as Edinburgh Rugby’s main club partner in a deal that will last for the next four seasons. The partnership is the biggest agreement of its kind in the history of both organisations and follow

More than £4 billion of government-backed loans were provided to Scottish businesses during the coronavirus crisis, according to a new breakdown from the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) showing the amount of debt taken on across every Scottish council area. By comparison, the latest offic

Bank of Scotland owner Lloyds Bank is planning to become one of the UK's biggest landlords as it aims to purchase 50,000 homes in the next ten years. The lender plans to charge tenants rent as a private landlord under its recently launched Citra Living brand.

Donna Paton has been appointed as director of finance at West of Scotland Housing Association (WSHA) following the retirement of current director, Colin MacCallum. Having started in the post in early June, Donna will be responsible for the development of our strategy, policy and performance in respe

Persimmon has said its positive outlook has been reaffirmed by a strong trading performance which saw profits and productivity return to pre-Covid levels.