Major fund to boost women in business snubbed by big banks despite Chancellor Rachel Reeves calls for greater support

A £250MILLION money acceptable up to boost women successful concern and backed by the Chancellor Rachel Reeves has been snubbed by City institutions.

Only Barclays, plus manager M&G, slope Morgan Stanley, Visa and the British Business Bank person truthful acold pledged support.

Among those to accidental "No" to the Invest successful Women Taskforce are NatWest, HSBC, Bank of America and Legal and General.

Aviva, which is headed by Amanda Blanc, is yet to commit, it is believed.

It follows probe showing pistillate founders pull nether 2% of task superior backing which is often cardinal to get firms growing.

The Taskforce, cochaired by Barclays' caput of concern banking Hannah Bernard and Brit entrepreneur Debbie Wosskow, was acceptable up by the past government.

Reeves backs it and says the system could beryllium boosted by £250billion if women were capable to commencement and standard businesses astatine the aforesaid complaint arsenic men.

She is facing calls to get pension funds to nonstop assets into femaleled companies and has been warned that rises to superior gains tax volition blunt pistillate entrepreneurs' ambitions.

Emma Jones, of business-to-business work Enterprise Nation, said: "If the extremity crippled is nary longer the imaginable it erstwhile was, women whitethorn not spot entrepreneurship arsenic a vocation path.

"That would beryllium a monolithic nonaccomplishment to the economy."

Ms Wosskow said: "We are acceptable connected our ngo of making the UK the champion spot successful the satellite to beryllium a pistillate entrepreneur.

"We impulse arsenic galore banks and investors arsenic imaginable to articulation us.

"Everyone agrees that it is important that the manufacture comes unneurotic to lick this issue."

ADDISON LEE SOLD FOR £269M

THE UK's biggest minicab operator, Addison Lee, has been sold by its founder's lad to a Singaporean taxi firm.

Cityfleet Networks, owned by Singapore's Comfortdelgro, paid £269million.

The concern has been sold by shareholders Cheyne Capital and Liam Griffin, lad of laminitis John Griffin, who took backmost power of the concern successful 2020 to steer the steadfast done the pandemic.

Multi-millionaire John, who near schoolhouse without qualifications, started the concern with 1 car successful 1975.

Liam past twelvemonth attacked erstwhile backstage equity owners, Carlye, for "making a hash" of plans to grow Addison Lee crossed determination cities. He said ComfortDelGro "share our philosophy, imaginativeness and ambition".

Addison Lee transports astir 7 cardinal radical crossed the superior each twelvemonth and has 7,500 drivers.

A LATTE TO PAY

Starbucks has promised to shingle up its paper and prices aft customers became sick of its pricey pumpkin spice lattes.

The cafe giant, backed by celebrities specified arsenic vocalist Ed Sheeran, above, suffered a income slump forcing it to scrap nett guidance for the year.

Starbucks said that planetary income fell by 7 per cent successful the past 3 months arsenic customers balked astatine the terms of its drinks and the clip it takes to queue astatine engaged stores.

New brag Brian Niccol said the concern would "simplify our overly analyzable menu, hole our pricing architecture and guarantee that each lawsuit feels Starbucks is worthy it each azygous clip they visit".

It came arsenic Coca-Cola yesterday reported a 1% income slump.

LLOYDS BUDGET STABILITY ALERT

LLOYDS, the UK's biggest owe lender, has warned banks request a "competitive, stable" taxation authorities amid reports the Chancellor is readying a Budget taxation raid.

Finance main William Chalmers yesterday said the slope would invited a Budget that promoted a "pro-growth agenda" and highlighted that Lloyds is already 1 of the UK's biggest taxpayers.

He added: "It is besides important to person a competitive, unchangeable taxation authorities to promote concern and lending."

Lloyds made £1.8billion successful profits successful the 3rd 4th of 2024, 2% little than past year.

McD'S IN PICKLE

MORE than £10billion has been wiped disconnected the worth of McDonald's aft its 4th pounders were blamed for a deadly E.Coli outbreak.

The fast-food elephantine has been implicated successful 49 cases successful the US, which has resulted successful 10 hospitalisations and 1 death.

Shares successful the steadfast fell by arsenic overmuch arsenic 15% successful 2 days aft the US Centers for Disease Control confirmed a nexus to its onions.

Charu Chanana, main concern strategist astatine SAXO, said: "McDonald's revenues and net could look pressure."

M IN TAX FEAR

MARKS & SPENCER brag Stuart Machin says firms volition find it harder to make jobs if, arsenic reported, employers' nationalist security contributions emergence successful the Budget.

Mr Machin said immoderate jump, erstwhile coupled with different taxes that deed retailers, specified arsenic substance duty, would summation the difficulty.

He said: "This Government was elected to beforehand a maturation agenda, but what I've seen and heard truthful acold doesn't adhd up to a coherent maturation narrative."

Marks & Spencer has astir 65,000 staff.

A £111MILLION bid for luxury handbag shaper Mulberry has been dropped by Mike Ashley's Frasers Group. The determination comes 1 time aft Mulberry said the connection was "untenable" without the backing of biggest shareholder Christina Ong.

BUILDERS AXE JOBS

HOUSEBUILDERS Barratt and Redrow are cutting 800 jobs conscionable weeks aft completing their £2.5billion merger.

The enlarged institution said it was looking to marque £90million of outgo savings from efficiencies.

Staff affected volition beryllium successful elder management, backmost bureau and cardinal enactment roles, alternatively than improvement oregon sales.

The manufacture is already grappling with a shortage of operation workers.