Business

Image copyright Getty Images Outsourcing giant Serco has been fined £19.2m for fraud and false accounting over its electronic tagging service for the Ministry of Justice (MoJ). The fine is part of a deferred prosecution deal with the Serious Fraud Office, which will end an investigation that began in 2013. Serco had been understating how […]

Image copyright Getty Images Supermarket giant Sainsbury’s has warned that the consumer outlook continues to be uncertain after it saw a further slide in sales. In the 16 weeks to 29 June, its total retail sales excluding fuel fell by 1.2%. Like-for-like sales, which strip out the impact of new store openings, fell by 1.6%.

Image copyright De Beers Image caption These diamonds are signed with De Beers’ “Forevermark” inscription Fake and irresponsibly sourced diamonds are undermining confidence in the industry – sales are down. Can new technologies, such as laser etching and blockchain, reassure an increasingly sceptical public? In a lab in the California city of Carlsbad, between Los

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media captionTesco boss Dave Lewis says the impact on shoppers of a no-deal Brexit is still uncertain. Planning for the new Brexit deadline is “more difficult” because the supply network will be full of Christmas stock, Tesco’s boss has warned. Dave Lewis told the BBC that the new

Image caption Will this industrial estate in north Kent one day become a key destination? If you head to Swanscombe Peninsula in north Kent, you will see what can be best described as a rather unattractive industrial estate. Only accessible by car, rows of corrugated metal warehouses containing garages and car body repair workshops sit

MPs, campaigners, teachers and parents are calling for better financial education to be included in the primary school curriculum – it’s already in the secondary school curriculum – as research shows that our financial habits are set by the age of seven. The BBC catches up with a group of primary school children and listens

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media captionWATCH: Fans are accusing TikTok creators of exploiting them for cash Video-sharing app TikTok says it is “sorry” that some children and other young people have felt pressured into sending money to their favourite influencers on the app. TikTok lets fans send their favourite videomakers “digital gifts”,

Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Christine Lagarde is known as the “rock star” of international finance “No, no, no no, no no,” was what Christine Lagarde was reported to have said when asked last year if she was interested in running the European Central Bank (ECB). Yet just a few months later, she has

Image copyright Reuters Image caption Ursula von der Leyen was backed by Angela Merkel but there was resistance to her nomination within the German coalition EU leaders have picked German Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen for the top post of European Commission chief, after a marathon three-day summit. The nomination of Ms Von der

Image copyright Getty Images There has been a sharp rise in the number of cyber-incidents reported by the UK’s financial sector caused by hack attacks and other problems, according to official figures. A Freedom of Information request to the Financial Conduct Authority revealed that the number of declared events rose from 69 in 2017 to