The UK economy flatlined in July, with GDP growth stuck at 0 per cent as a sharp contraction in manufacturing weighed on activity at the start of the third quarter. Official figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed output falling short of the 0.1 per cent growth economists had forecast, underlining the fragile nature of Britain’s recovery. The ONS said the economy grew by 0.2 per cent on a rolling three-month basis, a...
For decades, Armenia’s banking sector operated like an exclusive club—formal, corporate-focused, and resistant to change. Traditional institutions catered mainly to large businesses, leaving everyday customers with outdated processes and limited access. Vazgen Gevorkyan entered the industry with a different perspective: what if banking genuinely served people? His contributions at Evocabank didn’t just modernize one institution—they helped shift expectations across the entire sector. Breaking Traditional Barriers By the mid-2010s, Armenian banking had developed a troubling imbalance....
In the world of enterprise transformation, conventional wisdom suggests that change should be measured, gradual, and carefully paced to avoid disrupting operations or overwhelming employees. But Athalie Williams, a transformation executive with over three decades of experience in complex organisational change, believes this approach often leads to failure. “I think that it has to be slow, that it has to take multi-year decades,” Williams says, identifying what she sees as outdated thinking about transformation timelines....
We’ve trained in plenty of places across the capital, from shiny health clubs to no-frills 24-hour spots, and we’ve built a fair picture of what works and what doesn’t. Out of all the best gyms in London, one clearly comes out on top: Crowns Gym. It sets the standard, and in this guide we’ll share our take on the rest so you can judge for yourself. Top 5 Best Gyms in London Crowns Gym –...
Sotheby’s has posted a steep increase in annual losses as the world’s art market continues to struggle, compounding pressure on the auction house owned by billionaire Patrick Drahi. Filings from parent company Bidfair Luxembourg show losses more than doubled to $248 million (£184 million) in 2024, compared with $106 million the previous year. Revenues fell 18 per cent to $813 million as commission and fee income was hit by a marked decline in high-end collecting,...
London North Eastern Railway (LNER) has warned passengers to remain vigilant after a cyber-attack on a third-party supplier exposed customer contact details and some journey history. The operator stressed that no financial data, passwords or ticketing systems had been compromised and that train services continue to run as normal. The breach, which LNER said it was treating “with the highest priority”, highlights the growing risk of cyber-attacks on UK transport operators and their supply chains....
Larry Ellison, the 81-year-old co-founder of Oracle, has leapfrogged Elon Musk to become the world’s richest individual after a surge in demand for artificial intelligence services sent Oracle shares soaring. The company’s stock jumped more than 40 per cent in New York trading on Wednesday, boosting Ellison’s net worth by $101 billion in a single day and taking his total fortune to $393 billion, according to Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index. The dramatic rise underscores the extraordinary...
TikTok has overtaken Google and Amazon to become the world’s most scraped website, underlining how the artificial intelligence boom is transforming demand for online data. According to Decodo’s second annual Most Scraped Websites report, the video-first platform recorded a 321 per cent surge in scraping traffic, climbing from outside the top 10 last year to claim the number one position in 2025. The findings point to a profound shift in the data economy as businesses...
Britain’s festive shopping habits are undergoing a technological transformation, with new research showing that more than seven in ten consumers will use generative AI to help choose Christmas presents this year. The sharp rise—from just 31 per cent in 2024 to 71 per cent in 2025—highlights how quickly AI is being woven into everyday retail decisions, from gift inspiration to budget management. The findings come from Shoppers Say Yes to GenAI This Holiday Season, a...
Chancellor Rachel Reeves has signalled a fresh push to support small businesses by reforming business rates, pledging to remove the “cliff edges” that discourage firms from expanding. At present, companies lose all access to small business rates relief when opening a second property, a rule widely criticised for stifling growth and investment. Speaking today, Reeves said the government’s top priority was delivering growth and that small businesses were central to that ambition. “Our economy isn’t...
