When Russian authorities banned anti-war candidate Boris Nadezhdin from participating in this month’s presidential election, their message was clear: the Kremlin would no longer tolerate a competitive electoral landscape — even one in which Vladimir Putin’s victory was guaranteed. If in past elections, the Kremlin allowed a few handpicked opposition candidates to be on the ballot,
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Stay informed with free updates Simply sign up to the Equities myFT Digest — delivered directly to your inbox. Europe’s equity markets are at a record high but beneath the surface they are in crisis. Trading volumes are sinking, initial public offerings are scarce and some of its biggest companies prefer the appeal of the
Stay informed with free updates Simply sign up to the Social affairs myFT Digest — delivered directly to your inbox. Last weekend, I spent a good hour reading about the five Conservative party politicians tipped to replace their troubled leader, Rishi Sunak. The front-runners vary, depending on whether you look at a betting agency such
Five years ago members of Italy’s most celebrated business dynasty gathered at a grand 18th-century villa outside Turin following the funeral of Marella Agnelli, widow of the great 20th-century industrialist Gianni Agnelli. But rather than a sombre reunion, the event proved the latest flashpoint in a feud that has split the family as the late
Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Pension funds are the answer to the UK’s economic stagnation — so say ministers, policy experts and just about everyone else. Any discussion about how to attract more investment into UK infrastructure, start-ups or equities
Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. The world of self-help teems with motivational quotes about the power of positive thinking, and the importance of reframing the negative. “Once you replace negative thoughts with positive ones, you’ll start having positive results.” “Positive
Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. H2O Asset Management’s auditor has warned that the firm’s accounts “do not give a true and fair view” of its financial position, handing the once high-flying investment group a rare “adverse” opinion. A former star
Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Israel has “basically signed on” to a six-week ceasefire that would be used to facilitate a second round of swaps of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners, a senior US administration official said. Several hurdles remain
Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. German chancellor Olaf Scholz has promised a full investigation after Russia published a recording of a phone call between senior German air force officers in which they appeared to discuss supplying missiles to Ukraine. Speaking
More UK boards are raising chief executive pay to rival US peers, marking a shift in sentiment among top bosses, chairs and investors previously reluctant to engage in transatlantic remuneration wars. The London Stock Exchange Group is among the latest seeking to gain shareholder approval for a pay package for its chief executive David Schwimmer
In late January The Body Shop said it was selling a swath of its international business in a deal hailed by the ethical beauty brand as a “decisive step towards delivering a strong turnaround strategy”. The buyer of hundreds of stores in Europe and Asia was described as an unnamed “family office” by the chain’s
Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Santander is facing a potential shareholder rebellion at its annual general meeting this month after influential proxy adviser ISS recommended that investors vote against executive chair Ana Botín’s pay package. Botín is one of Europe’s
Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Not a day passes without me screaming at televisions, pepper grinders, lawnmowers or Tupperware. Such poor design. So badly executed. If only Steve Jobs or Sir James Dyson had made you, damn it! Hence my
Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Would you risk your life to stand for parliament? That is now as serious a question as it was when the IRA bombed Margaret Thatcher’s cabinet. The fact that Britain has its first prime minister
Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Two of the UK’s largest fund managers have begun using corporate bonds to underpin their leveraged gilts trades, aiming to bolster their portfolios against the sharp moves that shook the UK government bond market in
As the share price of St James’s Place began to plummet by almost a third on Wednesday morning, shareholders could have been forgiven for feeling a sense of déjà vu. For the third time in less than 12 months, an earnings warning had sliced a significant amount of value off the FTSE 100 wealth manager.
Stay informed with free updates Simply sign up to the Financial & markets regulation myFT Digest — delivered directly to your inbox. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt is expected to set out plans in next week’s Budget for a regime to allow UK private companies to have their shares bought and sold on exchanges, with the aim
Stay informed with free updates Simply sign up to the Pensions industry myFT Digest — delivered directly to your inbox. Poorly performing pension plans will be banned from taking on new business as part of a major shake-up of Britain’s £120bn workplace retirement market, under government plans unveiled ahead of next week’s Budget. Chancellor Jeremy
Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Attorneys for shareholders who defeated Elon Musk’s $56bn Tesla pay package have asked a Delaware state court to award them shares in the electric vehicle maker worth nearly $6bn as payment. In a filing with
Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. At some point, I manage to bend most conversations towards my pet obsessions, one of which is climbing. I am not very good at it. But I do try hard. I bring it up because
Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Joe Biden rebuked Israel on Friday, saying it had “no excuses” for not letting more aid into Gaza as he announced the US will soon begin airdropping food into the enclave. Biden’s announcement and criticism