With a new series of Dragons’ Den returning to our screens in the summer, executive producer Sam Lewens has an "interesting" time with the BBC show's big hitters... more
Have the Lib Dems thought through their plan to tax houses over £1 million? They “might find the definition of a house less than clear-cut”... ... more
SOME would have it that the recent rise in the oil price is evidence of optimism - a sign that the global economy is getting stronger and that the prospects of recession turning into depression have dimmed.... more
Banking: Former Merrill Lynch chief executive John Thain will hand over names of staff who were paid $3.6 billion in bonuses just before the firm merged with Bank of America... more
Watching the new US Treasury Secretary, Timothy Geithner, announce his quackish remedy for our financial ailments this week, another politician came to mind. The Bambi stare, the disembodied grin. It was Tony Blair all over again. And Wall Street hated it, sending the Dow plummeting in response to his ideas.... more
TIMES are tough at Merton council. It’s ordered council employees who weren’t able to make it into work because of the snow, to account for the time from their annual leave.... more
Is Merrill Lynch the worst company in history? Competition for the title is tough, but any study would have to give weight to the claims of the self-styled “world’s biggest stockbroker”
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Economics: As the world’s richest and most powerful executives fly out to the luxury Alpine resort of Davos, the hotels and restaurants hosting their glittering parties and dinners are braced for chill economic winds... more
Banking: Banking executives at Morgan Stanley and Merrill Lynch have become the latest senior bankers to give up their bonuses this year as the global financial crisis bites... more
Investment bank Merrill Lynch, which has accepted a takeover offer from Bank of America, is set to wield the axe in its trading division, with some 500 jobs said to be on the line... more
Banking: Bank of America has made John Thain - who as Merrill Lynch chief engineered the firm's sale - head of investment banking, securities and wealth management at the new company... more
Banking: Merrill Lynch chief executive John Thain and his head of trading could pocket $47 million (£26.1 million) if they leave the bank, or take lesser roles under Bank of America ownership... more
Chancellor Alistair Darling says we are in the biggest financial crisis in 60 years. So we obviously have much worse to come than yesterday's 4.5% retreat on the FTSE 100... more
The phone has rung off the hook all weekend. “Are you OK?” I've asked friends whose husbands have been at Lehman Brothers. No, of course they are not... more
Banking: Doubts are growing over Merrill Lynch’s prospects for selling its bad loans, with Korea Asset Management (KAM) saying talks are faltering because of a disagreement over price... more
There's a Chinese proverb along the lines of “a fall into a ditch makes you wiser”. Ho Ching, chief executive at Singapore's giant sovereign wealth fund Temasek will know it well. But has she acted on it?... more
Investment bank Merrill Lynch have declared a total hiring freeze until the end of the year as it licks its wounds after billions of dollars in writedowns... more
A Wall Street trader has received what is believed to be the largest bonus of all time - a $300million (£156 million) gift to keep him working for a leading hedge fund... more
Merrill Lynch is losing the head of one of its most profitable trading groups as well as his deputy as chief executive John Thain cuts back the firm's investment in hedge funds... more
Sofia Coppola's boyfriend is lead singer and they won the Grammy for Best Alternative Music Album this year. Now, Phoenix tell Nosheen Iqbal, they are set to conquer London
Move over, Mahiki. Nightclub entrepreneurs Charlie Gilkes and Duncan Stirling are soon to launch a new Eighties-inspired club in Chelsea, in honour of Lady Thatcher
Morning:
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