Lloyds the landlord: how the bank quietly became a big rental property player

The black horse of Lloyds’ banks is a familiar sight on UK high streets, but the lender has quietly become one of the country’s biggest landlords, too, amassing £2bn in residential property, according to analysis.The company has reached the landmark valuation on its property assets after a drive to buy more than 7,000 properties, in news first reported by the Financial Times.Already the UK’s largest mortgage lender, it set out ambitious plans four years ago to acquire 50,000 rental homes by 2030 to become the country’s biggest landlord.It launched its Lloyds Living division in July 2021, then called Citra Living, which provides homes for rent and shared ownership at 42 developments across the country. They are a mix of houses and low-rise apartment blocks, usually located in suburban areas, rather than city centres

Growth in global demand for ‘green’ office buildings slows amid Trump policies

The growth in global demand for “green” office buildings has slowed after Donald Trump’s assault on environmental protection policies caused a slump in interest in the US, according to a survey of construction industry professionals.Building occupiers and investors across North America and South America expressed significantly lower growth in demand for green commercial buildings, a shift that “seems to be in response to a change in US policy focus”, according to a survey of members of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics). Reported demand across the rest of the world also fell, albeit not as sharply.Residential and commercial buildings together accounted for 34% of global carbon emissions in 2023, according to the UN Environment Programme. The majority of those emissions came from heating, cooling and powering buildings, although about a fifth came from construction

US private equity giant poised to take over online retailer The Very Group

The Barclay family is set to lose control of another part of their former business empire with a US private equity firm taking control of online retailer the Very Group.Washington-headquartered Carlyle Group is expected to announce it has taken over the retailer as soon as Monday morning.The change of control will bring to an end more than 20 years under the ownership of the Barclay family, which has been forced to give up a series of businesses – including the Telegraph newspaper, London’s Ritz hotel, and delivery company Yodel – that made them into billionaires, and one of the richest families in Britain.The Very Group’s board, chaired by former Conservative chancellor Nadhim Zahawi, met on Sunday to confirm the change of ownership, according to Sky News, which first reported the move.The Barclay family, led by identical twins David and Frederick, had owned Very since buying it in 2002 – when it was a catalogue retailer known as Littlewoods – for £750m

Last Christmas, you gave us first class: Royal Mail turns Scrooge with gift to staff of second-class stamps

Royal Mail says that it has “delivered Christmas” for more than 500 years, but this year many workers have been left feeling less than festive after the company downgraded a small gift to workers to second class.The postal service, which traces its history back to the appointment of a “master of the posts” by Henry VIII in 1516, has given workers a collection of 50 Christmas stamps to recognise their work over the busiest time of year. In previous years, including in 2024, workers have received a book of 50 or 100 first-class stamps, but that has quietly been switched to second class this year.The downgraded perk has caused bemusement among Royal Mail’s workers. It is the first Christmas since Royal Mail’s parent company, International Distribution Services (IDS), was bought by Czech billionaire Daniel Křetínský

I’m as capitalist as they get but Medicare for all is the best hope for US healthcare | Gene Marks

Deductibles. In-network. Out-of-network. Concierge medical services. Out-of-pocket expenses

UK banks still committed to climate goals, Bank of England executive insists

A Bank of England executive has insisted that UK banks are still showing a “vibrant” commitment to climate goals despite the recent demise of a global net zero target-setting group.David Bailey, the executive director of prudential policy at the Bank’s regulatory arm, the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), played down concerns surrounding the fact that significant lenders including HSBC and Barclays had followed their US peers in dropping membership of the UN-backed Net Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA). Those exits led to the closure of the once-lauded NZBA last month.“We’ve been focused on our responsibilities on the financial risks arising from climate change, and firms remain very actively engaged with us on that,” Bailey told the Guardian. Their engagement, he said “remains as vibrant … as it has over the past couple of years”