Business News
21st October 2019.
James Salmon, Operations Director.
FIRMS
KPMG partner pay falls
Partners’ pay at KPMG fell by an average of nearly 10% last year, with a memo circulated by UK chairman Bill Michael that has been seen by Sky News revealing that total average pay per partner in its most recent financial year was £629,000, down from £682,000 12 months earlier. This compares with the £765,000 average partner pay a PwC, which revealed its figures in September. The memo from Mr Michael also reveals that, subject to a final audit, KPMG’s overall profit had risen by 3.5% to £341m. The memo, which went to more than 600 partners, said £45m of investment in its audit practice had been funded from the year’s earnings, and also highlighted the impact of a decision to end non-audit work for audit clients, with Mr Michael saying he is confident “that taking some cost and pain now will significantly strengthen our firm in the fu ture.” Sky News notes that KPMG was fined approximately £18m by the Financial Reporting Council during the year.
Sky News The Daily Telegraph, Business, Page: 35
BDO resigns as auditor to £19bn UK money manager Fundsmith
BDO has resigned as auditor to investment company Fundsmith, with the move reportedly related to corporate governance and the need for audit firm rotation. Deloitte has been appointed to replace BDO.
Financial Times
CORPORATE
Bonmarché falls into administration
Fashion retailer Bonmarché yesterday went into administration and has drafted in advisers at FRP Advisory to handle the process. The chain’s 318 stores and concessions will remain open while it looks for a buyer. Chief executive Helen Connolly said Bonmarché will work with the administrators “to do all it possibly can to protect as many jobs as possible and secure its future.” FRP’s Tony Wright said the “persistent challenges facing retail have taken their toll,” but added: “There is every sign that we can continue trading while we market Bonmarché for sale and believe that there will be interest to take on the business.” Bonmarché, which is majority owned by retail tycoon Philip Day’s investment vehicle Spectre, reportedly considered a refinancing deal and a CVA.
The Times, Page: 2 The Daily Telegraph, Business, Page: 35 Daily Mail, Page: 97 The Guardian, Page: 6 The Sun, Page: 18 The Scotsman, Page: 1
Watt Brothers shuts up shop
Scottish department store group Watt Brothers has collapsed into administration, with administrators from KPMG now seeking a buyer for the business. Administrators said 229 of the group’s 306 employees were made redundant with immediate effect. Blair Nimmo of KPMG said Watt Brothers had been hit by “trading losses as a result of the well-publicised challenges being experienced across the retail sector.”
The Guardian, Page: 44 The Scotsman, Page: 1
Links lets HQ staff go
Links of London made 38 staff at its head office redundant yesterday. The jewellery seller earlier this month appointed administrators from Deloitte after its owners, the Folli Follie retail group, failed to find a buyer. Deloitte’s Matt Smith commented: “While we continue to talk to interested parties about a sale of the business, the ongoing cash-flow pressures mean the current cost base is not sustainable.”
The Daily Telegraph, Business, Page: 35 Yorkshire Post, Page 24
Conran shops around for investor
Sir Terence Conran has appointed advisers from KPMG to help bring in an investor as he seeks a new financial partner for his Conran Shop furniture business.
The Times, Page: 47
Accessorize remains at risk
Fashion chain Monsoon Accessorize remains at risk despite securing a restructuring deal, with a report from auditors at BDO saying covenants “are expected to be breached” and extra cash to keep the business afloat may not be available.
The I, Page: 68
Administrators appointed at yboo
Quantuma has been appointed as joint administrator of app developer yboo Limited. Simon Bonney, partner at Quantuma, said: “We are currently taking steps to keep the company’s IP and software live in order to seek offers from interested parties.”
Yorkshire Post, Page: 26
TAX
G20 finance ministers back OECD push to tax profits of multinationals
The G20 have backed efforts to reform how the profits of multinational companies are taxed, with proposals looking toward a global agreement rather than countries rolling out unilateral measures.
Financial Times
Reflecting on reliefs
The Telegraph looks at tax relief, with the Government last week publishing a document detailing the cost of the 362 reliefs on offer. Analysis shows there are 81 reliefs available on income tax and 27 on inheritance tax. Nimesh Shah of Blick Rothenberg looks at capital gains tax exemptions, highlighting a relief on wine sales, while Iain McCluskey of PwC says the Government is keen to see the marriage allowance used.
The Daily Telegraph, Money, Page: 2
INDUSTRY
MP backs call for loan charge scrutiny
Kevin Hollinrake MP, one of the candidates to become chairman of the Treasury Committee, has said the Treasury’s role in developing the loan charge is a “very relevant subject” for further scrutiny, “particularly given concerns about the independence of the current inquiry.” He was responding to a call from the All-Party Parliamentary Group on the Loan Charge for the next chair of the Committee to lead an inquiry into the loan charge and “properly scrutinise” the role of the Treasury and HMRC.
Yorkshire Post, Page: 26
PERSONAL FINANCE
Pension value could outstrip property
Analysis by pensions consultancy Hymans Robertson suggests the value of the average final-salary pension is on course to overtake that of a typical property for the first time next year. The study found that the average final-salary pension was worth £216,000 in July this year, compared with £110,000 in July 2008, while the average UK property price is currently £234,835, compared with £176,092 in 2008. Hymans Robertson analysts calculate that, if no Brexit deal is agreed, pension values could rise 15% next year to an average of £248,400 on the back of low interest rates, while property values could slip 7% to an average of £218,396.
The Times, Page: 63
ECONOMY
Carney: Brexit deal could boost economy
Bank of England governor Mark Carney has welcomed the Brexit deal negotiated between the UK and EU, saying it is likely to boost economic growth, telling Bloomberg TV: “It is good news that there is an agreement. I would expect the economy to pick up from quite a subdued pace.” Mr Carney said it was “important to have a transition to a new relationship” with the EU and “that’s what a deal would deliver if it is adopted”. Welcoming the fact that the deal would deliver a new economic relationship with the bloc, Mr Carney added: “The alternative is a No Deal and an entrenched uncertainty.” However, he said it “remains to be seen” if the deal agreed by Boris Johnson would be as positive for the economy as the deal put forward by his predecessor, Theresa May.
The Guardian Financial Times Daily Mail BBC News
Do you sell on credit?
With pressures on the cash flow it is essential that you stay on top of the credit limits you grant customers and watch carefully for any late payments.
Those customers will look for the easiest option to boost their cash-flow. Don’t let it be you.
You can’t just assume your customers can and will pay you eventually, no matter how big their name is.
It is essential to have credit management systems in place to monitor and check your customers credit worthiness.
It is also best practice to use a trusted third party like CPA to make sure you are paid on time by customers, no matter how good a name they have.
About CPA
The Credit Protection Association can help!
Formed in 1914, CPA has been providing credit management services to SMEs for over 100 years.
At the Credit Protection Association, we provide first class credit information that can help you avoid being over extended to customers who are at risk. Our monitoring service can flag up warning signs long before the end, giving you the chance to adjust and reduce your exposure. We provide recommended credit limits and credit scores on a traffic light system and can help you set appropriate credit policies for your customers.
We regularly publish lists of the latest insolvencies but by then it is too late. Our credit reports however predict approximately 96% of company insolvencies long before they arrive.
Companies in trouble usually have very bad cash flow and they try to deal with it by delaying payment to their suppliers, increasing your exposure to them.
If you supply on credit, help us help you identify the risks.
Why use a third party collector?
As a third party collector, we can also get your payments prioritised over those who are not as hot on collections. When you customer receives a letter from the Credit Protection Association regarding their outstanding account, they are going to want to get that resolved as a priority. Our overdue account recovery service can get your unpaid invoices to the top of their “to do” list and get your invoice paid.
Over the years we have collected billions in overdue invoices for our customers.
Our debt recovery and credit management services give our members the financial freedom needed to grow and prosper, while our new Late Payment Compensation department could unlock hidden potential and offer the compensation needed to springboard your business to success.
The Credit Protection Association – Prompting Punctual Payments – Ethical, Effective, Efficient, Economical collections
Ready to speak to an advisor?
For help or advice on credit management, entirely without obligation.
Call us today
0330 053 9263
CPA is passionate about late payment
The Credit Protection Association has been protecting smaller firms against poor payment practices for over 100 years.
We are extremely passionate about breaking the late payment culture that holds back the UK economy and threatens many SMEs with cash flow difficulties being the single biggest killer of Britain’s small businesses.
If you were regularly paid late we can help. Those former customers used you to boost their own cashflow, regularly paying you late.
As a result you had extra costs, you had the distraction of having to chase payment, you had opportunity costs because your capital was tied up in their late invoices.
Under little used legislation, you are entitled to compensation for those late payments.
Now you can boost your own cash-flow.
CPA can help unearth the those hidden treasures.
We have the technology to reveal the compensation you are due and we have the extensive experience and expertise to then turn those claims into cash.
Yes, CPA can help you boost your business cash-flow.
Don’t let your bankers control you, contact CPA today.
The Credit Protection Association – Prompting Punctual Payments – Ethical, Effective, Efficient, Economical collections
Do you realise you could be sitting on a fortune?
Late payments often result in a cash flow crunch and leave SMEs in need of a cash injection.
If you sold B2B on credit then there may be a hidden source of capital you can call on.
If you fancy an bit of extra cash in your business, rather than jumping through hoops with your bank, you could look to uncover the resources from an unexpected source within your own business.
Not many are aware but there could be a hidden fortune within your business, sitting there, just waiting to be uncovered and released.
We can help you uncover the pile of gold, you didn’t even know you were sitting on.
If you trade with other businesses and were often paid late then you could be entitled to significant compensation.
Under little known and under-utilised legislation your business could be due huge amounts in compensation that you didn’t even know about.
Let’s be clear – this is not a way to weaken any customer relationships you value. It is one that identifies who’s been paying late and then recover the potentially significant sums in compensation using Late Payment Legislation from businesses where the relationship has already ended.
You can pick and choose who you want us to follow up – but once we’ve agreed which companies you’d like to pursue compensation from it’s a fast process and there’s no financial outlay to you whatsoever. My team at CPA put its expertise to work to recover the compensation due and fight late payment culture.
That compensation could provide the cash boost your business needed.
But don’t delay, that compensation evaporates if not claimed within six years of the late payment.
How can CPA help?
CPA has developed a unique technology to dig into your accounting records and discover the cash injection you are due by means of compensation. The software does all the hard work. Our software interacts over the cloud with over 300 different software packages, working directly with your accounts package, just so long as it’s stored on a computer.
We recognise that most companies do not have the resources to spend time on the identification and calculation of Late Payment Compensation. Our service can produce an Analyses within just a few days with (usually) less than 30 mins of co-operation from our clients. We work directly with over 300 accounting packages but can also work with bespoke accounts packages. Indeed, speed is essential as the oldest invoices may fall foul of the 6-year time limit.
Once the Sales Ledger Analyses is made available to clients, all that is required is that management decide which commercially sensitive ex-customers to remove from the list and return it to us.
CPA then uses its years of collection experience to explain and recover the Late Payment Compensation Claims. Clients do not handle any part of the recovery process as our team will take all communications from the companies against who the claims has been made. Often, it’s simply a case of explaining the legislation, sometimes we have to go all the way and enforce the legislation through the courts.
The result is that we are realising clients’ claims worth tens and sometimes hundreds of thousands of pounds which, of course, is pure net profit. You may also be among the recipients of “hundreds of thousands of pounds” should you elect to take advantage of our services.
We do the work, you receive the cash.
If you have supplied goods and services to businesses on credit and were regularly paid late then you could be due significant sums in late payment compensation.
We are talking to companies and unearthing claims in the hundreds of thousands from former business customers who paid them late. Large business customers who abused their power to inflict unfair and sometimes illegal payment practices.
We are helping business owners who are looking to boost the returns from their business before they retire. We are helping businesses who have lost major clients after years of loyal service to get properly compensated for systematic late payment. We are helping companies that were looking to close down, who looked insolvent and finding that cash injection they need to avoid insolvency.
Those former clients who regularly paid you late can finally be made to pay.
Ready to speak to an advisor?
For help or advice on credit management, entirely without obligation.
Call us today
0330 053 9263
The Credit Protection Association is a credit management company established in 1914. If you supply goods or services on credit then we can help you!
The Credit Protection Association – Prompting Punctual Payments – Ethical, Effective, Efficient, Economical collections
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The Credit Protection Association – Prompting Punctual Payments – Ethical, Effective, Efficient, Economical collections