Barclays may face massive new penalty over currency rigging

Barclays could face a huge new penalty for rigging currency markets after pulling out at the 11th hour from the settlement talks that led to £2.6bn of fines being slapped on six other big players in the currency markets.

Apple voted United Kingdom's coolest brand as Twitter slumps

Apple has retained its title as the coolest brand in Britain for the third year running but Twitter has fallen out of favour to make way for rival Instagram, according to an annual survey.

Virgin Money preparing for IPO after appointment and profits quadruple

Sir Richard Branson and the US billionaire he bought Northern Rock from the government with are preparing to float the operation, rebranded as Virgin Money, in a move that could value it at up to £2bn.

AstraZeneca rejects Pfizer's $106 billion bid

AstraZeneca has rejected Pfizer's sweetened takeover bid, describing the proposed $106 billion deal as inadequate.

Britons in the lead with smartphone shopping

Britons are far ahead of their European counterparts when it comes to smartphone usage for online shopping, according to new research.

Japan's Suntory to buy GSK drink brands for $2.1 billion

TOKYO: Japanese drinks giant Suntory said today it would buy the top-selling Lucozade and Ribena brands from British drugs firm GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) for $2.1 billion.

Minimum alcohol price 'illegal', claims Scotch Whisky Association

In a letter to Downing Street, the Scotch Whisky Association (SWA), whose members include Diageo, the Edrington Group and Chivas Brothers, says the policy would act as an “illegal” barrier to free trade within Europe.

Budget 2011: UBM considers return to UK after tax changes

Business publisher UBM is considering relocating its tax status to Britain after proposed changes to the rules on controlled foreign companies (CFC) designed to stop multinationals relocating abroad.

The Government on Wednesday outlined a reform of the CFC and "foreign branches" rules that will cost the Exchequer £2.8bn over five years in lost corporation tax revenues but aims to land the bigger prize of making Britain far more competitive for multinationals. That came alongside a cut in corporation tax from 26pc in 2011 to 23pc by 2014-15.

Serious Fraud Office vows to pursue corrupt foreign companies

The head of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) is at loggerheads with ministers who are seeking to exempt overseas companies from Britain's new Bribery Act.

Speaking at an anti-corruption conference in Russia last week, Richard Alderman said he wanted the act to have a "wide jurisdiction", allowing the SFO to pursue overseas companies listed in the UK – even if they had little business activity here – whenever it was in Britain's public interest.