May 2022



Abrdn completes £1.5bn Interactive Investor deal

Edinburgh-based investment giant Abrdn has completed its £1.49 billion cash acquisition of Manchester-based Interactive Investor (ii), the UK’s second largest investment platform for private investors. Abrdn said…







Employee-owned firms top £690m, employ 5,350

New research commissioned by Co-operative Development Scotland (CDS), part of Scottish Enterprise, has given the clearest picture yet of Scotland’s employee-owned businesses (EOBs) and their…









UK borrows £145bn As Debt Hits £2.35 Trillion

UK government borrowing was £144.6 billion in the financial year ending (FYE) March 2022, revised down by £7.2 billion from last month’s first provisional estimate, but remaining…





DeepMatter hires former IP Group CEO Aubrey

Glasgow-based DeepMatter Group plc, the AIM-listed digital chemistry data and software company, said it will appoint former IP Group CEO Alan Aubrey as its non-executive chairman…



Stamp Free raises £600,000, valued at £4m

Edinburgh-based Stamp Free Limited, the digital postage company, said it raised £600,000 in an oversubscribed funding round as the business makes progress towards the commercial…










UK inflation hits 40-year high of 9%

UK inflation surged in April to its highest annual rate since 1982, increasing the pressure on finance minister Rishi Sunak to help households facing a…







Macfarlane Group buys PackMann in Germany

Macfarlane Group, the Glasgow-based packaging, design and distribution firm, has announced the acquisition of PackMann Gesellschaft für Verpackungen und Dienstleistungen mbH (PackMann), a protective packaging distribution…







McKay confirmed as European Club Rugby chairman

Former Scottish Rugby chief operating officer Dominic McKay has been confirmed as permanent chairman of the European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR), tournament organiser of the Heineken…


Aberdeen 3,000-home development site on market

Shepherd Chartered Surveyors announced it has been appointed by the joint administrators of Countesswells Development Limited (CDL) to market a massive 3,100-home development site west…





Grant Westfield sold to Norcros in £80m deal

Edinburgh-based bathroom wall panel designer Grant Westfield has agreed to be acquired by Wilmslow-based Norcros for an enterprise value of £80 million, with an additional potential earnout…














Phoenix Group makes board changes

Closed life and pension fund consolidator Phoenix Group Holdings plc, owner of the “old” Standard Life Assurance, announced the appointment of entrepreneur Maggie Semple as an…


Wheatley Housing names Steven Henderson CEO

Wheatley Housing Group Limited — Scotland’s biggest social landlord — announced that group director of finance Steven Henderson will be its new chief executive. Henderson will take…




Interactive Investor hires Santander’s Arshad

Abrdn-owned investment platform Interactive Investor said it has hired Santander executive Saj Arshad as Chief Commercial Officer. “Saj brings a strong track record of driving business…



Archangels appoints Ian Macleod as new chair

Archangels, the Edinburgh-based business angel investment syndicate, has appointed former investment analyst and fund manager Ian Macleod as the new chair of its board. Macleod takes…