Scottish Financial Review

Banco Santander has rejected an offer of around £11 billion from NatWest for its UK retail bank, saying the bid undervalued the business, according to a Financial…

Standard Life, part of Phoenix Group, said it succesfully concluded a £280 million Bulk Purchase Annuity transaction with the Cancer Research UK Pension Scheme, which…

The Scottish Government announced it will “implement a direct award” of the next Clyde and Hebrides Ferry Services contract to state-owned CalMac Ferries Limited in…

The UK central bank on Thursday cut interest rates by a quarter point to 4.25% as Donald Trump’s trade war dampens outlook for growth. Analysts…

TSB, the UK banking business of Spain’s Sabadell, has reported a statutory profit before tax of £101.3 million for the first quarter of 2025 —…

The UK’s National Wealth Fund (NWF) has announced a £600 million commitment to Iberdrola to upgrade the British power grid through its subsidiary Scottish Power…

Air passenger figures for Highland and Islands Airports Ltd (HIAL) remained steady in the year to March 31, 2025, according to the latest statistics. The…

Whitbread, owner of the Premier Inn hotel chain, has submitted plans to transform Capital House, next door to The Filmhouse in Edinburgh City Centre, into…

Troubled Aberdeen-based engineering and consulting giant John Wood Group said on Wednesday it secured three “reimbursable contract extensions” in the North Sea worth $118 million to…

Peak rail fares across Scotland will be scrapped from September, First Minister John Swinney has announced. In his Programme for Government speech, Swinney said: “Last…

Heart of Midlothian has confirmed that Brighton & Hove Albion owner Tony Bloom has made a proposal to invest capital of £9.86 million into the Edinburgh…

The Scotch Whisky industry has welcomed a “transformational” trade deal between the UK and India that will see Indian tariffs on whisky and gin halved…

Dundee-based publisher DC Thomson has announced the appointment of Ella Dolphin to the newly created role of Deputy CEO. “Ella joined DC Thomson in 2016…

By Mark McSherry Baillie Gifford’s £2.6 billion Monks Investment Trust plc said it is adjusting its portfolio “to ensure the Trust remains well-positioned for growth despite US…

A Kelso-based manufacturer of insect repellents is set to expand into new markets following a change in ownership facilitated by HSBC UK funding. HSBC UK…

Shares of NatWest — the banking group formerly known as RBS — briefly touched their highest level in 14 years on Friday after the group…

Glasgow-based secure cloud services firm Iomart Group plc said on Friday it will unite its cloud services activities under a single brand — Atech. Last October, Iomart…

Dundee-based Ace Aquatec, the welfare-first aquaculture technology company, has announced the successful closing of its latest investment round. The funding will directly support the creation…

Edinburgh has the most productive retail floorspace of any major UK city outside of London, with Glasgow close behind, according to new analysis from Knight…

STV Studios announced the appointment of Colin Waters as its Chief Financial Officer & Strategy Director. “Colin will join the production group in June and…

Scottish Friendly, the Glasgow-based mutual, has announced 2024 sales of £50.6 million, the second-highest sales in its 163-year history. Total assets under management stood at £4.2…

Scotland’s onshore GDP contracted by 0.2% in February 2025, according to statistics announced by the Chief Statistician. This followed growth of 0.4% – revised from…

A.G. Barr, the Cumbernauld-based owner of Irn-Bru, Rubicon energy drinks, Boost Drinks, Funkin cocktail mixers and MOMA foods, said it has entered into “exclusive discussions with…

Troubled Aberdeen-based engineering and consulting giant John Wood Group said on Wednesday its shares will be temporarily suspended from listing and from trading on the main…

Forth Ports Limited announced that its chair Robert Smith is retiring from his role at the company and is being succeeded by former Wood plc…

Edinburgh-based investment giant Aberdeen said its assets under management and administration (AUMA) fell to £500.1 billion in the first quarter from £511.4 billion at the…

Weir Group, the Glasgow-based global mining and engineering FTSE 100 firm, said it has completed the acquisition of Mining Software Holdings Pty Ltd (Micromine), a company…

Troubled Aberdeen-based engineering and consulting giant John Wood Group said Vioneo has awarded it a multi-million dollar FEED contract to deliver the front-end engineering design for its…

Schroders Capital, the $100 billion private markets business of London asset management giant Schroders, said it has completed the acquisition of the 244-bed W Edinburgh hotel…

Scottish Widows is preparing to launch an open-architecture Long Term Asset Fund (LTAF) later this year, pending regulatory approval, with Aberdeen Investments appointed as an initial…

Aberdeen-based NCIMB, a microbiology services provider and owner of the UK’s largest industrial, food and marine bacterial culture collection, has secured £1.7 million investment from…

The latest Noble & Co Whisky Intelligence Report reported that the secondary market for single malt Scotch whisky faced a sharp correction during the October 2024…

New forecasts from Cornwall Insight reveal that households in North Scotland, and North Wales and Mersey, are set to pay around £100 more annually for…

Karen Scholes has been appointed as the new president of ICAS for 2025-26, becoming the sixth woman to hold the role in ICAS’ 171-year history….

Scotland’s only direct air service to China will now operate year-round with Hainan Airlines extending its presence at Edinburgh Airport, which is part of the…

Scottish Borders Council said that a business case for the potential extension of the Borders Railway beyond Tweedbank to Hawick and Carlisle “will be progressed”…

Passengers will now be able to fly direct from Edinburgh to Washington D.C. almost all year-round as United Airlines extends its summer service into the…

Statera Energy said it has obtained planning approval from Aberdeenshire Council for the UK’s largest green hydrogen project. Having already won UK Government backing via…

Northern 3 VCT plc said it has appointed David Ovens to its board as a non-executive director and as a member of the company’s audit,…

Scottish Building Society — the world’s oldest remaining building society — has reported record balances for both retail savings and mortgages in its annual report for…

Edinburgh asset management group Baillie Gifford has been among the investors in a $152 million Series F funding round by Culver City, California-based Altruist, a “modern”…

Weir Group, the Glasgow-based global mining and engineering FTSE 100 firm, said on Thursday it is “redirecting US originated orders to our manufacturing sites in…

Scottish Financial Enterprise (SFE) said that Edinburgh has strengthened its position as a leading green financial centre, according to the latest Z/Yen Global Green Finance…

UK government borrowing in the financial year ended March 31 has been estimated at £151.9 billion — £20.7 billion more than in the same 12-month…

Glasgow-based Solasta Bio, an agri-biotech company specialising in the next generation of green insecticides, has appointed three senior business and industry experts to support the company’s…

Germany-based AviAlliance has announced plans to invest £350 million “in the future growth and decarbonisation” of AGS Airports over the course of the next five…

Glasgow-based secure cloud services firm Iomart Group plc said on Wednesday it expects to report revenue growth of 13% to £143 million for the year ended…

Businesswoman and investor Ana Stewart has been appointed the Scottish Government’s new Chief Entrepreneur. Stewart, who also co-authored a landmark “Pathways” report on supporting women…

An initiative which helps innovative Artificial Intelligence (AI)-focused scaleup companies to maximise their full commercial potential is now open for 2025 applications. The 6-month programme,…

CSignum, the Bathgate-based provider of wireless technology extending underwater and underground IoT communications, has completed a £6 million Series A funding round. The investment will…

Brian Cox is to star in a play at the Edinburgh Festival billed as a “biting satire” of a stage production “on the Scottish banking ambition…

By Mark McSherry A number of works by the late Scottish artist, designer and architect Charles Rennie Mackintosh sold for a total of more than £373,000…

A new Scottish energy transition hub is to be launched in Abu Dhabi, the centre of UAE’s energy sector. The hub will support Scottish companies…

Scotland-based biotechnology innovator MiAlgae has submitted plans for a new production facility in Grangemouth. The first phase of the site will create over 100 green…

Swedish wealth management group Söderberg & Partners has bought a minority 30% stake in Glasgow-based Murphy Wealth to “support the firm’s long-term growth and technological…

Aberdeen chairman Douglas Flint said China is “not going to back down” in its trade and tariff dispute with US president Donald Trump. Flint said…

Aberdeen-headquartered transport giant FirstGroup plc said on Tuesday it anticipates that its FY 2025 adjusted operating profit and adjusted earnings per share “will be ahead…

A DeepTech AI initiative has been launched in Scotland to bridge innovation between university postgraduate talent and NHS Scotland. “AI Discovery” delivered by CodeBase via…

London-based asset manager Schroders announced it has been appointed by Scottish Friendly as its new investment management partner for a £2.1 billion multi-asset and insurance…

Menzies Aviation, owned by Kuwait-based Agility, announced it has signed a $305 million agreement to acquire US-based G2, “an aviation service partner of choice for…

Scotland will respond to the ongoing global economic uncertainty by highlighting its economic strengths and making clear it is open for business, said Deputy First…