Business

NatWest has surpassed its headline commitment to lend £2 billion to women-led businesses by the end of 2025, announcing that it has already delivered £2.84 billion in funding across more than 55,900 loans. The achievement comes a full year ahead of schedule and reinforces the bank’s role as one of the UK’s largest backers of female entrepreneurship. The average loan size stood at around £50,700, with high demand seen across a wide variety of sectors....

SpaceX is gearing up for what could become one of the largest stock market debuts in history, with Elon Musk reportedly preparing to take the rocket maker public as early as next year at a valuation of around $1.5 trillion. If the flotation proceeds as planned, it would sit just below Saudi Aramco’s record-setting $1.7 trillion IPO in 2019. According to reporting from Bloomberg, SpaceX executives and advisers are advancing plans for the listing, which...

The Trump administration is preparing to impose one of the most stringent travel-screening requirements in modern US history, with foreign tourists set to be required to hand over five years of their social media history before they are allowed to enter the country. The proposal, filed quietly this week in the Federal Register by US Customs and Border Protection, would apply to all foreign nationals, including travellers from visa-waiver countries such as the UK and...

Small manufacturers across the capital are set for a major digital upgrade after London awarded more than £300,000 in grants through the first round of the Made Smarter London programme. Delivered by London & Partners, the fund is designed to help locally based makers adopt new technologies, improve productivity and strengthen their resilience amid rising demand and global competition. Twenty small manufacturers have secured grants ranging from £4,500 to £20,000, enabling investment in artificial intelligence...

In the bustling tech hubs of London, Manchester and Edinburgh, a handful of visionary founders launched what seemed like modest bets on live streaming innovation back in 2020. With initial seed rounds totalling around £10 million, these companies focused on creating real-time interactive experiences that blended television polish with social media immediacy. Fast forward to late 2025, and those early investments have ballooned into a collective valuation exceeding £2 billion, according to recent filings with...

Some people learn about a city. Others live it. John Gerges does both. As one of Toronto’s most recognised walking tour guides, he has built a career by transforming ordinary streets into moving stories. His tours feel less like scheduled events and more like guided adventures through the city’s energy, art and hidden corners. “Toronto never sits still, so my tours can’t either,” he likes to say. His approach has helped him stand out in...

When Maryam Simpson started creating homemade magazines as a kid on her family’s first computer, she didn’t know she was laying the foundation for a career in digital marketing. But her love for design, storytelling, and tech never left. Today, she’s a seasoned Marketing Specialist based in Hoboken, New Jersey, helping brands grow with strategy, empathy, and data. From launching rebrands to tripling client sales, Maryam’s work speaks for itself. But behind every campaign is...

Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group has acquired Swindon’s Designer Outlet, one of the UK’s busiest retail destinations, marking the latest move in the company’s fast-growing property portfolio. The popular shopping centre — housed within the Grade II-listed former Great Western Railway Works — attracts more than three million visitors a year and has been sold by LaSalle Investment Management, which only purchased the site in 2022. Michael Murray, CEO of Frasers Group, said the deal underscores...

The government has announced a £725 million overhaul of the apprenticeship system, setting out plans to create 50,000 new placements over the next three years in an effort to address rising youth unemployment and strengthen the UK’s long-term economic prospects. The reforms include a £140 million mayoral pilot programme giving regional leaders new powers to connect young people — particularly those not in education, employment or training (NEET) — with apprenticeship opportunities at local employers....

The Invest in Women Taskforce has surpassed its fundraising ambitions in a major boost for female entrepreneurship, announcing that it has now convened £635 million in commitments, more than double its original £250 million target set at launch in 2024. The milestone includes confirmation that Nationwide and the British Business Bank will join Barclays and M&G as anchor partners in the targeted £130 million first close of the groundbreaking Women backing Women Fund of Funds,...