Birmingham city council declared itself effectively bankrupt in September last year, but only now are the facts about what really happened beginning to emerge. A series of monumental problems and errors, including the botched implementation of a new IT system, a likely overstated equal pay liability, and a disastrous financial package imposed on the council by the last Conservative government, have paved the way for the largest programme of cuts and asset sales yet for any local authority.

This was far from inevitable. When council officers issued the section 114 bankruptcy notice last September, it identified a looming set of equal pay claims as the primary cause of the council’s financial distress. Two weeks later Michael Gove, then…

Whenever March Madness takes place, it’s a sure bet that people will be wagering on the college basketball games leading up to the championship known as the Final Four.

From office pools to online betting platforms to taking a crack at picking the perfect bracket, the allure of predicting game outcomes and potentially winning big is irresistible for many. Beneath the surface of this annual sports event, however, lies a darker reality: the dangers of sports betting and gambling addiction.

College students face a unique risk. A significant portion are unaware of the consequences and are focused exclusively on making money – potentially jeopardizing their academic success, ability to remain in school and graduate.

While the…

Company insolvency levels are higher than during the pandemic, according to the latest figures.

The number of firms in England and Wales going out of business last month was up 16% year-on-year, as reported by Sky.

There were 2,191 company insolvencies in July, according to the Insolvency Service, with the retail and hospitality sectors hit the hardest.

There were 320 compulsory liquidations in July – the highest monthly figure since before the pandemic.

Meanwhile, individual insolvencies were up by 24% year-on-year in July, according to separate official figures released yesterday (August 20).

The total of 10,524 included 634 bankruptcies, 5,727 individual voluntary arrangements and 4,163 debt relief orders.

Watching the Philadelphia 76ers vs. Oklahoma City Thunder game on TNT last Tuesday, one thing stood out to me beyond superstar Joel Embiid’s return to the court after two months on the sidelines: you cannot get away from gambling.

Before the game, the TNT pregame show crew gave the audience a five-leg parlay (a bet consisting of two or more bets that are combined into one wager) of the night, sponsored by FanDuel. 

During the game, the announcers gave a live update of the in-game betting spread, and how it’s changed since the beginning of the game. 

And during every commercial break, I was bombarded by a plethora of ads for gambling sites with some celebrity or retired athlete brand…

Last week there was good news for struggling students and recent graduates saddled with sizeable student debts.

The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, in an outing on FM Radio, acknowledged there was “a range of areas where we need to do much better with the younger generation … and Hecs [the Higher Education Contribution Scheme] is one of them”.

After a horror year of 7.1% indexation of student debts and with the parliamentary library estimating that this year will see another 4.2% – 4.8% growth in the amount outstanding, help is on its way.

The Universities Accord final report, released in February, recommended the commonwealth ensure that loans didn’t outpace wage growth by setting the indexation rate to whatever was lower out…

Sunright Limited (SG:S71) has released an update.

Sunright Limited has completed the liquidation of its wholly-owned subsidiary, KES Systems & Service (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., with the subsidiary’s business license revoked in March and the process finalized in August 2024. The company assures stakeholders that this move will not materially affect its net tangible assets or earnings per share for the fiscal year ending in July 2025.

For further insights into SG:S71 stock, check out TipRanks’ Stock Analysis page.

South Africa’s Transnet sets sights on government assistance to alleviate its US$7.3 billion debt.

South Africa’s Transnet is seeking government assistance to alleviate its R130 billion (US$7.3 billion) debt, aiming to improve its freight rail and port capacities. According to Reuters, Transnet’s Chairman Andile Sangqu said the company is burdened with debt repayments exceeding 1 billion rand per month, which is hampering its recovery plan to boost freight volumes, which have fallen from 226 million metric tons in 2017/18 to 152 million in 2023/24.

“We will require the assistance of the shareholder to give us some form of debt relief,” Sangqu said. “As we begin to make this increase in volumes, as we begin to generate new…

There was a significant increase in the number of firms that became insolvent in July when compare with the corresponding month last year, the latest figures show.

According to the Insolvency Service, 2,191 businesses went bust in England and Wales last month, up 16% on the 1,890 recorded in July 2023.

The figures included 320 compulsory liquidations which is the highest monthly number since before the Covid-19 pandemic.

The rise reflected “months of high interest rates, weak demand and rising costs continuing to feed through”, according to David Hudson, restructuring advisory partner at FRP.

He said: “We expect insolvency levels to remain elevated for some time yet.

“While economic conditions are improving, there are many…

Latest figures from the Insolvency Service have shown that there were 2,191 business insolvencies in England & Wales in July 2024, 7.3% lower than in June 2024 (2,363) but 15.9% higher than the same month in the previous year (1,890 in July 2023). 

The insolvencies consisted of 320 compulsory liquidations, the highest monthly number since before the Covid-19 pandemic, 1,691 creditors’ voluntary liquidations (CVLs), 155 administrations and 25 company voluntary arrangements (CVAs). All types of company insolvency were higher than in July 2023.

CVLs accounted for 77% of all company insolvencies. The number of CVLs decreased by 9% from June 2024 but was 15% higher than during the same month last year (July 2023), after…

Insolvencies across the board have peaked at 1,711 in May 2024, up by 59.9 per cent from last year.

This is according to new data from the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), which show that insolvency rates have been steadily increasing post-COVID. 

First-time insolvencies also hit a new peak in May, up 383 from the same time last year to 1,249 – or up 44.2 per cent.

Retail comes in fourth in overall business insolvencies at 949 in FY24 year-to-date as of June 23. This is below other services, with overall insolvencies at 1,287, followed by accommodation and food services (2,013) and construction (3,779).

Retail insolvencies are up 26 per cent in FY24 compared to 686 recorded in FY23.

In a media release dated…