Business

Harlow Payments was founded in 2024 by a leadership team that had already spent decades inside the payments industry. Before Harlow, its founders and executives helped build and scale EVO Payments, a global processor that was later acquired by Global Payments for $4 billion. That experience shaped how they think about payments, growth, and responsibility. Rather than chasing hype, Harlow was created to fix what its leadership had seen break over time. Layers of bureaucracy....

Zeus Sleep Ltd has been awarded £1.48 million in funding from the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) to lead one of the UK’s largest multi-centre clinical trials into Obstructive Sleep Apnoea (OSA). The trial will be led by Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust in partnership with King’s College London, and will evaluate a next-generation, non-invasive medical device designed to address sleep apnoea by stimulating the airway at the source. The...

India and the European Union have announced a landmark trade agreement, ending nearly 20 years of stop-start negotiations as both sides seek to deepen economic ties amid rising global trade tensions. “This is the mother of all deals,” said Ursula von der Leyen at a briefing in Delhi, while Narendra Modi described the pact as “historic”. The agreement will enable free trade in goods between the EU’s 27 member states and the world’s most populous...

Nearly 50 Labour MPs have written to the chancellor calling for an immediate halt to a planned rise in business rates for music venues, warning that the revaluation could push many spaces to the brink of closure. In a letter seen by the BBC, the MPs urged Rachel Reeves to pause the revaluation due to take effect from April, arguing that it could drive increases in music venues’ business rates bills of between 45 per...

Retail sales growth is expected to slow across the US, UK and major European economies in 2026 as consumers continue to feel financial pressure and discretionary spending remains subdued, according to new forecasts from Bain & Company. In its 2026 Global Retail Sales Outlook, Bain said macroeconomic uncertainty, cost-of-living pressures and cautious shopper behaviour would weigh on growth in the year ahead, even as inflation eases in most markets. “Consumers continue to face financial pressure,...

The High Court has granted an urgent hearing to a judicial review challenging the Government’s proposed changes to inheritance tax reliefs for farms and family businesses, in a move that significantly raises the legal stakes around reforms currently passing through Parliament. The claim, brought by Collyer Bristow LLP on behalf of professional services firm Alvarez & Marsal and claimants including Thomas Martin, George Martin and campaign group Farmers and Businesses for Fair Tax Relief, targets...

Poundland has joined forces with the retail industry charity Retail Trust to expand mental health and wellbeing support for its 12,000 employees across the UK. Under the new partnership, Poundland staff will gain access to the Retail Trust’s confidential wellbeing helpline alongside a wider package of support, including counselling services, financial assistance and specialist help for young people in their care. The initiative also includes dedicated resources to help employees cope with abuse at work,...

More than 330 businesses across Greater Manchester have been supported to grow, innovate and improve productivity through the University of Salford’s Centre for Sustainable Innovation (CSI), which is marking two years since its launch. Established in 2024, the Centre for Sustainable Innovation was created to give small and medium-sized enterprises access to university expertise, specialist facilities and funding opportunities that are often out of reach for growing businesses. Since opening, the centre has secured more...

The Barbour family has paid itself a £30 million dividend after a fashion-led revival of waxed jackets helped drive a sharp increase in profits at the heritage outerwear group. Accounts filed at Companies House show that J Barbour & Sons posted a £10 million rise in operating profit to £49.5 million in the year to the end of April, as renewed demand for its signature waxed jackets boosted sales and margins. The company, founded in...

The owner of Revolution Bars is preparing to enter administration, putting as many as 2,200 jobs at risk across its UK estate. Revel Collective, which operates 62 pubs and bars under brands including Revolution Bars, Revolucion de Cuba and Peach Pubs, confirmed on Monday that it has filed to appoint administrators, with a formal appointment expected within the next 10 days. The company said discussions with a buyer are “well advanced”, but warned that any...