Weekly Wrap Up: Turing took the forbidden fruit

“We are dedicated to helping patients, who often have no effective treatment options, by developing and commercializing innovative treatments”. This is the statement waiting for visitors to the ‘About’ section of Turing Pharmaceuticals website. However, having seen any of the myriad news coverage recently you could be forgiven for not finding this sentiment particularly credible. This week, the “fully integrated” biopharmaceutical Company returned to the world’s headlines, and whilst in the UK it may have been overshadowed by the Autumn Statement, it deserves no less attention.

Turing Pharmaceuticals has been courting controversy since August, when it acquired the exclusive rights to market Daraprim from Impax Laboratories. Contract Pharma reported that this was a strategic effort by Turing to begin fulfilling its promise to combat serious infectious diseases. Prior to the acquisition, Turing had been a one drug shop, having acquired Vecamyl, a hypertension medication, earlier in 2015. However, the acquisition of Daraprim was undoubtedly what brought Turing into the public eye.

Daraprim is a drug that is an antiparasitic medicine used for the treatment of toxoplasmosis and acute malaria. Both toxoplasmosis and malaria prey on those with weakened immune systems, and therefore are likely to infect those suffering from HIV and AIDs. Additionally the drug has a number of “off label” preventative uses, again, for those suffering from HIV. Clearly, Daraprim is an invaluable life line, and significantly improves the quality of life for those suffering from HIV or AIDs by helping protect them from additional debilitating diseases.

Initially, the purchase of Daraprim was positively received in the media. Turing’s Chief Executive, Martin Shkreli, was quoted as saying that the acquisition put the Company on target to bring “novel medication to patients with serious disorders”. Shkreli also stated his intention to invest in the further development of the drug to yield an even better clinical profile, as well as plans to launch educational efforts to raise awareness and improve diagnosis for patients. Shkreli’s intentions appeared, at least on the surface, honourable, it seemed as though his primary interest and that of his Company was the welfare of patients suffering from unquestionably awful diseases. Medical professionals were similarly impressed with Shkreli, noting, “Turing’s commitment to improving treatment for patients with toxoplasmosis is commendable” (Louis M. Weiss, M.D., M.P.H., Professor, Departments of Medicine and Pathology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City). Unfortunately, the positive stride that Weiss and other medical professionals perceived Turing’s actions to represent was not to be.

What came next will surely go down as how not to handle situations when sentiment turns against you, as the New York based start-up destroyed any good will the medical industry or public may have held towards it by immediately hiking the price of its drug by over 5000%. The New York Times noted that the drug originally retailed for $13.50, compared to the $750 per tablet Turing was expecting people to pay. This controversial move would make the drug unavailable to many people and clearly at odds with Turing’s company mantra. In an interview with CNBC, Shkreli was even unapologetic about the decision, arguing that the drug had been priced too low and his Company needed to make a profit, stating that it had previously been like selling an Aston Martin for the cost of a bike. Following the ensuing backlash from both media and medical professionals Turing cowed to public pressure, and pledged to roll back the increase to ensure the drug remained affordable. However, following this week’s announcement, it is clear that this was an empty promise. The Guardian reported this week that Martin Shkreli has declared he will not lower the price of his medication after all.

Turing Pharmaceuticals, and in turn Shkreli’s, actions are perceived as the worst kind of profiteering through incontestable monopoly comparable. However, there is hope for the patients who have had their medication taken away from them, and as Tim Worstall argued in Forbes, “markets work”. In the face of the gross (potential) profit taking by Martin Shkreli, Imprimis Pharmaceuticals announced that it has made an alternative to Daraprim that would cost roughly a dollar a pill, or $99 for a 100-pill supply. The fact remains that, Turing’s monopoly although threatened, may remain if the new drug is proven to be less effective than Daraprim. Also, the irreparable damage that has been done to the reputation of the nascent Turing Pharmaceuticals in both the medical and financial worlds might eventually lead to the Company folding, leaving the world without the sole producer of Daraprim. With this in mind, it seems Shkreli should be asking himself the pertinent question; were the potential profits worth it? Did his workforce deserve the wave of negativity he has foisted upon them?

Reputation management is vital to corporate relationships, and if Turing has plans to acquire further companies or source more investors, it is conceivable that the private equity firm would need to reconsider its public relations strategy. If Shkreli and the Company does not show willingness to change, it is arguable that will burn the bridge of ever taking his Company public, surely the exit he envisaged when he founded it…



This week, Abchaps attended the Gorkana financial debate in aim to discuss the communication challenges in today's financial services market. The panel included Alex Letts CEO of Ffrees, Christina Sandkühler of La Salle Investment and Editor of City AM Christian May.

We also hosted a market lunch, where we discussed general topics such as the Pjizer – Allergan merger and Switzerland’s alternative Bank Schweiz.

We attended a Scottish whisky tasting event at Marriott Harrison’s in anticipation for St Andrew’s Day. We took the opportunity to discuss new appointments at the law firm over a dram or two.



Macquarie Capital appointed Ben Bailey as head of Telecommunications, media, entertainment and technology in Europe. Prior to the appointment, Ben led the internet and digital media investment banking team at Jefferies.

Canaccord Genuity Wealth Management appointed Jane Parry as head of marketing and communications. Parry joined Canaccord Genuity from Duncan Lawrie Private Bank.

Clyde & Co appointed Robert Wilson as partner in its clinical negligence team. Robert joined Clyde & Co from Capsticks.



“Toxoplasmosis” – an infection caused by a parasite called Toxoplasma gondii.



Christmas has come, with all the John Lewis baggage that this entails, and therefore this weekend, Tate Modern is holding its own twist on a traditional Christmas Market with all the usual trappings of mulled wine, but set in the grandeur of the turbine hall.

For the second out of office hours, why not use the Tate to Tate service, taking you from Modern to Britain, for the exhibition on Art and Alcohol. Booze has been one of man’s greatest muses since fermentation was discovered. Pride of place is given to George Cruikshank’s ‘Worship of Bacchus’.

Finally, if you fancy emulating the antics of art, why not try the Absinthe Masterclass, taking place at Vinopolis. The green fairy is blamed for Van Gough’s madness, and whilst it’s unlikely to make you cut your ear off, it will probably lead you to a slightly fuzzy Monday.

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Weekly Wrap Up: An Affair to Forget

True to the core values of its business, the company that owns adultery website Ashley Madison has decided to stray from its home market when it goes public. The Toronto-based Avid Life Media made headlines this week when it announced its plans for a London listing this year. But it wasn’t the announcement itself that generated extensive press coverage. It was the Company’s reason for deciding to list in Europe that has received the attention.

The Company’s Head of International Relations, Christoph Kraemer, told Bloomberg that “Europe is the only region where we have a real chance of doing an IPO”. Why is that? Even though half of the adultery site’s users are based in the United States, Kraemer claims they have to list in London because Europe is more tolerant of adultery.

Except that’s not exactly true, according to the Pew Research Centre. In a poll asking respondents if “married people having an affair is morally unacceptable”, 84% of Americans did agree that cheating is bad. And in France, less than half of the respondents condemned affairs, with only 47% agreeing.

Avid Life Media is not, however, planning to list in France. And the UK has much less of a laissez-faire attitude towards infidelity: 76% of those who were asked considered it wrong. That is the same percentage as Canada, and not too far behind the Americans. Simply put, listing in London doesn’t make sense based on society’s attitude towards adultery.

Avid Life Media and Ashley Madison are obviously not concerned with this inconvenient fact. It’s also hardly believable that Ashley Madison is worried about investor morality in the US. Anyone who has seen the Wolf of Wall Street knows that stateside investors wrote the book on immorality. But claiming otherwise gave the story of the Company’s potential listing an angle that was picked up in much of the mainstream media in the US and the UK. It’s simply a tasteless PR strategy – and based on what the Company represents, no one should be surprised by this tactic.

Here’s what’s really happening: Avid Life Media is desperately trying to drum up interest after a failed attempt to raise money in Canada. But even an amateur investor could see that their growth strategy of expanding into new markets is limited – and potentially dangerous. Women will inevitably suffer far greater consequences if caught committing adultery; in many parts of the world it still results in ostracisation and violence. Investors would have to be prepared to accept this uncomfortable truth.

In the UK, Ashley Madison is currently banned from advertising on television because it is not deemed morally justifiable. And given that the UK’s attitude towards this type of business is on par with Canadians, it is likely that Ashley Madison’s attempt to raise money in London will soon be an affair the UK can altogether forget.



This week, Abchaps attended an interesting CIPR Speaker lunch with Ashley Armstrong, M&A Correspondent at The Telegraph. She touched on multiple topics, predicting 2015 to be a good year for M&A and purchasing influence of the Asian market to increase. As well as hosting a successful Malaysia focused Market Lunch, we attended the Election Debate Seminar, chaired by Vincent Wood, business Tax Partner at Moore Stephens. Discussions at the seminar included the truths behind the different parties’ pre-election pledges and asked the question whether the parties can realistically implement them.



Steve Frizell has been appointed Partner in PwC’s UK financial services risk assurance internal audit services team. Meanwhile, Standard Chartered has been promoted to Chief Economist and hired Ding Shuang as Head of Greater China Economic Research from Citigroup. Ian Sadler has become Partner and National Global Compliance and Outsourcing Leader at Baker Tilly.



“Morality” – usually considered the differentiation of intentions, decisions and actions between those that good and those that are bad. Although derived from Latin, this word apparently has a completely different meaning in French.



The Tweed Run is happening on Saturday, which sees cyclists take to the streets in their well-pressed best, cycling past London’s most iconic landmarks kitted out in the far more flattering tweed and brogues, compared to the de rigueur Lycra.

The Southbank Centre have an interesting take on election season, with their Changing Britain series this weekend taking in the period from 1945-1979, a seminal junction in British political life, with the welfare state as we know it today being born.

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Weekly Wrap Up: Co-op’s Comeback: Value vs Values

The Co-operative Group, the UK’s biggest mutual owned by 8.5 million people, announced this week that it has returned to profit. This development will likely surprise anyone who remembers when chief executive Richard Pennycook was forced to admit that, '2013 was a disastrous year, the worst in our 150-year history'.

The Co-op, which once had funeral, pharmacy, insurance, banking and a supermarket among its businesses had lost a staggering £2.5 billion and faced the near collapse of its banking arm, which had a £1.5 billion hole in its finances. Former City minister Lord Myners, who resigned from the Group’s Board, blaming former managers, ‘who were allowed to run amok like kids in a sweet shop’.

If it wasn’t bad enough that mismanagement had almost run the mutual into the ground, there was also the matter of the Co-op Bank’s former Chairman Reverend Paul Flowers being charged with drug offences. The Group received extensive coverage not just on the business pages but across the front pages thanks to the so-called Crystal Methodist.

In short, it was a very public, very ugly meltdown.

The Group subsequently introduced a turnaround plan – Rescue, Rebuild, and Renew. So this week’s announcement that they are back in the black marks a major milestone for the troubled group: it’s the end of the Rescue phase of the program.

Now it remains to be seen if the Co-op can build on this momentum and successfully complete the turnaround. The group has returned to profit because it sold its pharmacy and farming businesses but there is still a lot of work to be done. What sets the Co-op apart from other businesses is that it promises that it is ‘not just about profit’. Before the Co-op became plagued by scandal, the Group’s 2012 accounts even stated, ‘In line with our member-owned model, investment decisions are not driven by the purely financial demands of shareholders, but by the wider concerns of our members’. And that promise is also exactly why this turnaround can’t just be about profit.

In order to restore its tarnished image, the Co-operative also has to find a way to regain the respect, loyalty and trust it once held. In other words, the comeback has to be as much about restoring these values as it is about restoring value to its businesses.



During this short Easter week, Abchaps hosted a Market Lunch, attended the Third Annual Nowruz Commission Gala Dinner at the Institute of Directors and caught up with Man Group.



Westhouse Securities announced that Andy Crossley will be joining as Managing Director from Peel Hunt. Meanwhile, Mike Falvey moves from Four Seasons Health Care to partner of the performance team at KPMG. Baring Asset Management also appointed Edmund Chong, previously of HSBC, as Head of Sales, Client Service and Business Development, distribution for Asia ex. Japan.



“Crystal Methodist” – A Methodist minister with a penchant for crystal meth and cocaine. A phrase whose origins can be traced back to the Daily Mail, if only because of the high number of headlines featuring the UK’s very own Crystal Methodist, Paul Flowers.



This Saturday is, of course, all about the Oxford Cambridge Boat Race. It's always quite the spectacle, so make sure you pick out a good spot along the river to watch the race unfurl. Not into the whole Oxbridge rivalry? Perhaps the Oxford Cambridge Goat Race is more your thing.

Head to the Garden Museum in Lambeth for an exhibition about the New Covent Garden Flower Market. Listen to excerpts of interviews about the market, what it’s like for people working there, the connection to the old Covent Garden Market and the changes that are happening now.

Grab a bargain on Sunday at Judy’s Affordable Vintage fair, at York Hall in Bethnal Green, with a selection of hand-picked stalls packed with affordable vintage fashion, accessories and homewares.

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Weekly Wrap Up: Minimise risk to your Corporate Reputation

The value of a good corporate reputation cannot be understated. It’s one of the main reasons businesses invest in communications and public relations. That’s why tracking media trends and watching for developments that signal risks, as well as opportunities, should be part of any corporate communications strategy.

This week there was a prime example of exactly why this matters so much. CEO of fashion retailer Next, Simon Wolfson, made headlines when he criticised an organisation dedicated to urging businesses to pay a so-called living wage. He claimed that £6.70 an hour is enough to live on for some people. Coming from a man titled Lord, worth an estimated £100 million and who took home a £4.6 million pay package last year, this out-of-touch comment would have been a PR disaster at the best of times. However, his outrageous remark came on the same day that Next posted bumper annual figures: pre-tax profit increased 12.5% to £794.8 million and the dividend rose by 16.3%. These results should, and probably would have, dominated media coverage of Next if not for Lord Wolfson’s poor judgement.

It would have helped if Lord Wolfson, or his communications advisors, had been paying attention to just how controversial living wage discussions have become. In the US, for example, Walmart and McDonald’s were among the major corporations that were villainised in the press due to their refusal to pay a living wage. Low paid employees at both companies even went on strike to demand a better wage.

Corporate missteps like this naturally generate plenty of bad publicity and are detrimental to an organisation. But arguably the worst part is that this damage could have easily been avoided by tracking recent media trends. If that had happened at Next, maybe they would have realised that someone who makes £4.6 million a year should refrain from providing “thought leadership” on the living wage debate.



This week Abchaps welcomed some of our UK IPREX partners to our offices, to discuss how our complementary services can further benefit our clients; joined Equity Development for an evening where they hosted three exciting and innovative company presentations within the media and technology sector for the City and PCIM community; and also attended Gorkana’s breakfast briefing, hosted by Director magazine. This newly relaunched title offers a direct line to C-Suite occupiers, and with its new look, Director does away with the usually drab vision of the board room.



Simon MacKinnon has been appointed Asia strategy adviser at the asset management firm Old Mutual Global Investors. Panmure Gordon has hired Patric Johnson as head of securities. He will also serve on Panmure’s Board.



“Living wage” - the amount an individual needs to earn to cover the basic costs of living. So maybe Lord Wolfson does know a thing or two about a living wage? His £4.6 million pay package should be just about enough to survive in London.



What says Hipster more than food served from a van? Get your kicks this weekend at Urban Food Fest, a revolving cast of food stalls and trucks serving a UN worth list of food cultures. All taking place in a Shoreditch car park, it could only be more zeitgeist if it came with a moustache.

Continuing the theme of facial hirsuteness, it is currently impossible to be more than six feet from a man with facial topiary. Love it or hate it, it has become part of our culture. So celebrate or castigate at Somerset House, whose exhibition Beard is open until Sunday.

Benedict Cumberbatch may have been taken off the market, but the Museum of London is still offering the opportunity to Sleep with Sherlock. Included in this all night event are a plethora of themed opportunities, ranging from a three course dinner, talks from detective specialists, right through to ghost stories told in the depths of the museum.

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Weekly Wrap Up: Cyber Abuse

Cyber abuse has become an ever growing problem that has mirrored the internet’s growth over the last decade. With the introduction and vast uptake of social media in recent years, cyber abuse has become a popular topic, prompting discussions on cyber bullying and trolling. This week, Twitter announced new anti-trolling tools in an attempt to combat online trolls. ‘Trolling’ is a description for when a user’s account or post (on Twitter, Facebook etc.) is bombarded with insults, provocations or threats. Cyber bullying sees the ‘traditional’ form of bullying (physical and mental abuse) move online. This has a number of consequences: The most obvious being that it's much harder to control, monitor and discipline those partaking in cyber bullying, particularly as cyber abuse is often faceless and nameless. This means that recipients often don't know who is attacking them over the World Wide Web.

The anonymity of cyber abuse intensifies the insults because abusers feel they have the autonomy to behave without repercussion. Would they say the things they do if they were standing in front of the individual they were abusing? The internet and social media has allowed individuals to connect with a much greater audience than ever before, connecting with people who you may never meet or see face to face. This therefore makes it easier to insult another individual via keyboard. It takes away individual responsibility for what a person says as well as and more importantly, the consequences it has to the individual or the group the insult is intended for.

This also ties in with the concept of gang culture. ‘Pack mentality’ is as equally apparent online as it is in real life. More people are likely to join in if one person starts abusing a group, product, person, video or picture. For example, where avid followers of a band or artist have been seen to attack (online) journalists or individuals simply because they criticise said band or artist. What makes this scenario more worrying is the age of the online abusers and some of the deviant phrases posted. So as much as the young can be the targets for cyber abuse, they can just as easily be the culprits.

However, cyber abuse is not limited to certain categories such as age or profession. It encompasses anyone who has access to the internet. Being a part of a social media platform will also increase an individual’s chance of being targeted. Twitter in particular, has broken down barriers in terms of the contactable audience, placing every member on an even playing field. An example of this is the constant abuse aimed at celebrities on Twitter. Celebrities were once seen (and still are in some cases) as ‘untouchables’ – someone who would never be in contact with the ‘average Joe’. But with the increasing popularity of Twitter, it has been seen as a way for celebrities to connect with their fan base and stay in the public eye. It is now far rarer for example to find a celebrity who isn’t on social media than one who is.

After Robin Williams’ (comedian and actor) death earlier this year, his daughter Zelda Williams was driven to delete twitter after the intense online harassment she suffered following the suicide of her father (at least two people sent her “photoshopped” images claiming to show her father’s body). A more recent example occurred last month: Olympic gold medallist Dame Jessica Ennis-Hill received death threats via Twitter, after she said she would request her name to be removed from a stand at Sheffield United if it offered a new contract to convicted rapist Ched Evans. These are extreme examples of how easily anyone can be reached and targeted by online abuse with the even more troubling question remaining – can anything be done about it?

Twitter’s new anti-trolling tools announced this week is a good step towards abolishing internet trolls and bullies. Now a user can simply now click on a tweet and select ‘block or report’, then click through a list of reasons explaining why they wish to do this. The previous system meant the person had to fill out a report describing the alleged harassment. Users witnessing abuse will now also be able to report it. Twitter has improved their behind the scenes procedures so that reviewing and responding to abuse occurs faster. This is one step in the right direction as the attempt to eradicate this type of behaviour continues.

In the UK, there is no legal definition of cyber bullying, however a number of laws exist that can be applied to cases of cyber bullying and online harassment. In India on the other hand, cyber bullying is a bailable offence, punishable with three years of imprisonment and a fine; however the complainant and police can interpret what constitutes offensive behaviour. Perhaps using India as an example, the only way forward is to be harder on cyber abuse, making examples of the worst cases. With the internet and social media continuing to expand at such a rapid rate, cases of cyber abuse are likely to continue to rise with them. This may be the only way to turn online trolls and bullies into the equivalent of outdated technology.

Organisation All Rise are currently undertaking research into cyber abuse and collecting data on how wide spread it is. There's a short survey here which needs your input: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/LRWKGJ9



This week, Abchaps attended the Pre Xmas Social Drink of the East meets West Club in Kensington Gardens. Abchurch and East Meets West Club share the interest of connecting businesses in Asia and the West. As well as joining Stickland Tucker's Christmas Drinks, we also participated in Gordon Dadd’s tech roundtable event, where we contributed our insights into the UK tech scene, especially on London tech IPOs.



Edison Investment Research appointed Hans Boström to its global healthcare team in London, who joins from Goldman Sachs. Meanwhile, Jim Muir has joined Baker Tilly as its new head of Financial Services. Muir Joins from KPMG. Finally WH Ireland have create the position of head of Risk for James Baptise. Baptise joins with 20 years’ experience in the industry, having previously worked for Espirito Santo Investment Bank.



‘Cyber Abuse’-Using the internet or digital media platforms to deliberately cause harm or harrass another individual or group, often repeatedly.



Starting with something a bit different, The London Illustration Fair returns with a three-day event of artist-led stands, workshops, live DJs and pop-up food stalls. Showcasing the most innovative and exciting illustrators, printmakers and draftsman working in London today, the fair also champions four invited designers as part of its Affiliated Artists scheme, which this year includes Mr Bingo and Louise Pomeroy.

Continuing with the weird and the wonderful, if you are set on spreading the Christmas cheer this Saturday, then join in with Santacon. Dress up as the man of the moment and run around London at this 'non-profit, non-political, non-religious and non-sensical' celebration of Christmas cheer. Santacon is a flash mob-style gathering that sees three huge groups of Santa’s wandering through the city, giving out gifts and free hugs, singing carols and occasionally popping to the pub. Towards the end of the routes the groups join together into a huge throng of merry Santa’s (plus a few elves and reindeer – they're allowed to join in, too).

Finally for a relaxed Sunday away from the high street crowds of Christmas shoppers, Spitalfields City Farm is the place to go. The farm is hosting stalls selling handmade cards and non-massed-produced presents, as well as Christmas tress themselves, and will be invoking a non-jarring festive atmosphere with carol singing, mulled wine and seasonal family activities.

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Weekly Wrap Up: The Communications of Switching

This week saw a new figure hit the headlines: 1.2 million people have switched their current accounts since September 2013.

This comes one year on from the launch of the Government’s scheme to encourage consumers to switch their banking current accounts by reducing the time that it takes to switch bank accounts from 30 days to just seven.

As detailed in the Payment Council’s annual report, switching levels are up 22% on last year, with some banks winning new customers - Halifax, Santander and Nationwide - and some, inevitably, losing customers - NatWest, Barclays, HSBC and Lloyds.

This rise in consumer switching has been hailed as a success story of a scheme that is going to plan, or so according to George Osborne.

There are many benefits that have been discussed as rising from the growth of consumers switching their current accounts:
1) Accountability: The Daily Mail has suggested that this switching is the public’s way of “punishing” the banks for the mistakes of pre and post-2008
2) Competitive rates: In order to woo potential new customers and to retain existing customers, banks are now offering more customers more competitive rates and incentives
 3) Entrepreneurialism: With increased switching comes the opportunity for new companies to appear and succeed. This has been seen in the banking industry with so-called “challenger banks”, and is also being seen in the energy industry with the growth of alternative energy providers

So to what can we attribute this switching?

The most obvious answer is the governmental support that this scheme has received; a call to action from the powers that be which made headlines by suggesting that consumers deserve better.

But we in the communications industry would like to suggest that another big reason as to why the scheme was so well received is the act of communicating itself, both online and in the press. Whereas previously it was more likely that “a man would divorce his wife than switch his bank account”, due to the fact that it was unheard of and very difficult to switch, this scheme has not only made it easier but also more common for bank customers to question the product that they have been receiving and to look around at other options.

Whilst some have said that this 1.2 million is a modest figure, the BBC reported that 69% of consumers are now aware that they have the ability to switch due to the launch of the scheme.

This scheme has come at a time when consumer understanding and empowerment is of utmost importance. Whether that be regarding current accounts, energy bills or phone tariffs, consumers are now being given the necessary information and comparison tools to take more control over their own finances and help them live their lives more efficiently. Consumer price comparison websites such as moneysavingexpert.com have become hugely popular in recent years for just this reason, as have debates about preferred providers on social media.

The communications industry sits at the heart of this new information era, with information about new schemes and alternative providers being disseminated through national, trade and technical press, as well as through websites and social media. Companies seeking to ensure that their voice is still heard and that their commercial and financial case is still shared must therefore be keen and willing to engage with communications so as to ensure that they are not on the losing side of the market. Companies must also learn to listen and respond to the comments of their customers or face losing them to competitors.

In years gone by, customer switching and the need for communication were not in the mind of the corporate. Today, however, customers are on the lookout and companies must fight (and shout) to keep them…



The cold may be setting in but Abchaps are still out and about! We met up with some of our favourite journalists at Bloomberg and Dow Jones this week to get their take on the somewhat ‘choppy’ markets. We also caught up with the team at Daniel Stewart over a few glasses at our favourite local. We work very closely with a number of their team, and so it was fantastic so get everyone together again.



Investec has hired Christian Hess to head its financial sponsor transaction group. Christian was previously a partner at Compass Partners and the founder of Hess & Co International. Warren Mead has been appointed the head of challenger banking and alternative finance at KPMG, where he worked for 15 years. Robin Baillie has joined law firm Squire Patton Boggs as a global projects and real estate partner. Robin was previously a partner at Nabarro.



"Uswitch": an energy price comparison website helping consumers find the best energy deals on the market. Websites such as these heavily drive consumer switching

Frieze London, the contemporary art fair, is taking place in Regents Park.  Frieze is expected to draw in the world’s rich and famous and it is anticipated that they will spend millions on different works. The art fair has gained enormous popularity of recent years but the organisers have capped admission to 70,000 over the course of the event as it is unable to expand. The nearby illustrious and plush streets of Marylebone and Mayfair are expected be net gainers of the elite who will pile into its restaurants, cafes and hotels. 

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Weekly Wrap Up: The New Newsmakers

The barbaric murder of British soldier Lee Rigby in Woolwich this week has shocked and appalled the public. The violence of the act was horrific in itself, but the brazen and boastful justification of the murderer is perhaps the most sickening part of all.

Far from being concerned about being caught, the suspected murderer – we have to call him “suspected” despite multiple eyewitness accounts – and his accomplice stood by their victim, waiting for police to arrive and the opportunity to cause more political damage. One of the attackers allegedly encouraged witnesses to take his photograph and to call the police, whose slow response time was somewhat staggering. These were people who wanted their cause to be heard and wanted the public to hear from them directly about their crime. In some ways, they played the media perfectly into their own hands.

The murderer was filmed on a mobile phone shortly after the attack, appearing holding a meat cleaver and covered in blood. He explained that the murder was in revenge for Muslims killed by British servicemen in Iraq and Afghanistan and went on to talk about the fact that the British public will never be safe and future victims will be the “average guy”. It is likely he was aiming to incite hatred for Muslims within the British public, creating further conflict and violence in its wake. The video is now plastered all over the web and has been published by all the national news outlets, taking this directly destructive message to a much wider audience than those who actually witnessed the attack and aftermath.

Was the media right in publishing this video – wouldn’t it have been enough to publish a transcript without the graphic images? It is surely the image of the cleaver and the blood that is going to stir up emotion – and perhaps the desire for revenge – much more effectively than words alone. On the other hand, it might have been classed as censorship not to publish, and in any case we have to assume it would have made its way into the public eye through YouTube in any case.

So, with the average Joe becoming a newsmaker (as long as he has a mobile phone and internet connection) does the media have any responsibility not to pander to extremists? To avoid censorship issues, it could be argued there was really no option. Perhaps the decision on whether to publish should, in the end, have come down to old fashioned taste. As an industry professional, I would suggest that publishing that type of propaganda on respected news websites, is not in good taste at all.



We've been out and about this week at EcoConnect - De-mystifying EIS, VCTs, R&D Tax Credits for Green Businesses; the LSE Group RAG meeting in Leeds, Cambridge Life Science Networking and a special dinner hosted by Cavendish Corporate Finance/ Kleinwort Benson on 'Capital value from digital innovation'. Abchaps also benefitted from comprehensive LinkedIn training, along with CIPR time management.



It's been a busy week in the City with Brewin Dolphin's double appointment of Rob Burgeman and Peter Long as the new co-heads for London office. Baker Tilly appointed Sarah Lang as a forensic services division manager and Steve Railton as a managing partner. Grant Thornton hired ex Ernst & Young corporate tax specialist Alan Richardson; whilst Charles Stanely announced that Ben Money-Coutts has been appointed chief operating officer of its financial services division. Marriott Harrison also appointed Catherine McLoughlin as a partner in its corporate department.



'LION’ – LinkedIn open networker; rather than connecting only with people you know, as LinkedIn recommends, 'LION's actively connect with anybody and everybody. The concept is often criticised, but LIONs are nonetheless becoming increasingly common.



The London Canal Museum is now running summer tunnel boat trips down Regent’s Canal. The tours are running two Sundays a month until October.

Michelle Obama’s favourite American retailer J.Crew has a pop-up shop today and tomorrow in King’s Cross, ahead of opening their flagship UK store.

National Vegetarian Week starts on Monday and there are plenty of events to get involved with.

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You’re Hired!

Are apprenticeships a better way to get young people into work?

Source: Huffington Post 

This week is National Apprenticeship Week: a week dedicated to raising awareness of apprenticeships amongst would-be apprentices themselves as well as companies who are being encouraged to take an apprentice on. On another note, it has given the ever-game BoJo another opportunity to excel himself on the comedy photography front.

The new Normal?

During a recession, unemployment rates are expected to rise but according to a recent parliament briefing youth unemployment in the UK is a worryingly high 20.8%. Thankfully, our rates are slightly less concerning than some Eurozone countries such as Spain where youth unemployment hit 55% in January. Think about that for a second. More than half of 16 to 24 year olds in Spain have no job. It’s a frightening statistic for the country in the long term and really shows why governments should be finding workable solutions to get businesses recruiting again. The British government believes that apprenticeships are the answer and announced on Monday that it wants to make apprenticeships the norm for those students leaving school but not heading for university. Over half a million people began apprenticeships this year, a huge increase on last year’s number of just 280,.


University: not the be-all and end-all

Apprenticeships, as an alternative to university, have been discussed a lot recently. Soaring fees amidst accusations that many universities were offering ‘Mickey Mouse’ courses has led to young people considering a different path to employment. The drive toward apprenticeships is being spurred on by the government’s formal apprenticeship scheme offering incentives for businesses that take on apprentices.

However, the scheme has not been without criticism. Last year, Panorama found that nearly £250 million had been handed to private companies to train apprentices with little scrutiny of how it was being spent - some of these companies didn’t even have jobs to offer the people who signed up. There has also been concern that the complexity of the system may be putting employers off. However the government has acknowledged this and set out a plan to make the process simpler.

Ladder for London

In London our youth unemployment rate is 25%, slightly higher than the national statistic. The Evening Standard has been particularly proactive in promoting apprentices through its Ladder for London campaign. The good thing about the Ladder for London campaign is that the Evening Standard is working with a variety of sectors, not just manual labour jobs that apprenticeships have traditionally been associated with. Without this campaign I don’t think Metro Bank would have committed to taking on 150 apprentices. So far, 650 young people have been signed up through the campaign and this number will hopefully increase over Apprenticeship Week. The campaign got off to a good start and managed to achieve 100 apprentice placements in 100 days. We at Abchurch, named in the Top 100, are proud to be part of that accomplishment, having taken on an apprentice who has turned out to be incredibly helpful and is learning a lot about an industry you would traditionally struggle to get into without formal education. But we found out about the scheme through the Evening Standard Campaign. I’m sure there are many other businesses out there that have the potential to employ an apprentice or two but simply don’t know how. We need a much bigger media campaign which National Apprentice Week has started. National newspapers should run similar campaigns to the really successful Evening Standard one. Not only is it good publicity for the companies involved but it is also a socially responsible thing to do.

Richard Sowler

Follow us on Twitter @AbchurchComms

Climate Week: Innovating our way out of the problem

This week is Climate Week, Britain’s biggest environmental occasion of the year with half a million people attending 3,000 events nationwide. We at Abchurch have been playing our small part in the office by relying only on natural light this week (and we have plenty of it) – it’s quite therapeutic and I thoroughly recommend it, although with it getting dark around 5pm, you need to know when to give in!

Learning about the technology and innovation UK companies are coming up with to counter the climate change issue is one of the key things we can take away from Climate Week. On Monday, 14 companies and individuals received awards at the House of Commons for their work to tackle climate change over the past year. The innovative examples include Loowatt, a waterless lavatory system that uses anaerobic digestion to convert waste into biogas. Invented by a British company and based in Madagascar; there is a clear application for this product in parts of the world where lack of water is an issue, with an added benefit of generating power for the household. This type of innovation is essential to prevent the climate change fiasco that some people predict.

Another award winner was a documentary film called Chasing Ice, documenting a photographer’s effort to capture the effects of climate change by setting up 34 cameras across 16 glaciers in the Arctic. It really is worth a watch because apart from being visually spectacular, it was made by James Balog, a climate change sceptic until 2005 when he was sent to the Arctic for an assignment and saw for himself the extreme change in the glacial landscape since his previous visit. It also seems to have had a strong impact on viewers – an American fan of the famously right-wing and staunch global warming sceptic Bill O’Reilly says this film “has changed her life”.

Excess Meat Consumption

When it comes to concern about climate change, most people think close to home and of their own transport and energy efficiency. We do need to reduce our personal CO2 emissions, but I don’t think people realise the efficiency and inefficiency of some other products that we buy. Take meat production for example, beef is the least efficient, and pork is the most efficient. Did you know that in the USA 80% of the output from agricultural land is used to feed animals? 80% of corn, 90% of soy, 70% of wheat produced goes directly into the mouths of the animals that will go into our mouths. That’s not all: 50% of the water in America is used to irrigate the food that is fed to animals. This level of consumption is not sustainable in the long term, particularly considering the projected population increases. Research by Exeter University suggests that in order to become sustainable we need to reduce global meat consumption from 16.6% to 15% of the average daily calorie intake – about half of the average western diet.

Many organisations are promoting the concept of eating less meat - not no meat, just less. I think this is a much more workable solution of cutting down the consumption of meat per person. Most people would struggle to go fully vegetarian, so promoting eating less meat is more constructive and realistic. Meat Free Monday for example is a completely workable idea. If more people signed up to this sort of initiative we could quickly cut our demand for meat.

Reducing CO2 Emissions

There are signs that Europe is moving in the right direction in terms of cutting CO2 and making farming more efficient. The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), the system that subsidises farmers within the EU, is undergoing reforms to align itself with the Europe 2020 strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. This includes proposals to ‘green’ the direct payments to farms by offering farmers extra money to do green good deeds. Considering the size of the CAP budget (€58 billion in 2011), this is a serious amount of money. It would encourage farmers, for example, to buy items such as an anaerobic digester that would turn cow manure into methane which would be used to generate electricity. However, in true EU policymaker fashion, this is a slow process and the exact specifications of the reforms are still unknown.

Can we afford to change?

Personally, I’m an optimist when it comes to climate change and believe that we will innovate our way out of the problem. There will come a point when renewable ways of producing energy become cheaper than their non-renewable counterparts so economically it will make sense to make the change. Solar power in particular is improving at such a rate it will soon be able to compete with fossil fuels on a cost basis, according to Google co-founder Larry Page and futurist Ray Kurzweil.

So whilst Climate Week is drawing to a close, consider the true cost to the environment of everything you consume. You could even attend an event. And with that I’m off to make a cup of tea. No, scratch that. I’ll have a tap water.

Richard Sowler

Follow us on Twitter @AbchurchComms

Horsemeat Scandal: The beginnings of a better food supply chain?

What’s your favourite horsemeat joke? Mine is “Went to the fridge to check my burgers, aaaaannndddd they're off!” There have been hundreds, with #horsepun still a popular hashtag weeks after the scandal first broke. It is heartening to see a little humour injected into the story because horsemeat isn’t actually dangerous - plenty of people around the world eat it, it’s just not mainstream in our culture. Some mischievous pubs such as the Lord Nelson in Southbank have even jumped on the public’s increased awareness of horsemeat by making a horse special burger so you can actually try a 100% horsemeat burger for yourself.

The problem, in terms of PR for the food industry, is that because of the consumer angle and the widespread nature of the problem affecting big brands, the coverage is unlikely to die down soon. It was first reported in January and it is still regularly a front page story on mainstream news outlets such as the BBC Online. Only last week horsemeat was found in Ikea meatballs, forcing the furniture giant to embarrassingly withdraw them from sale in 14 European countries and I’m sure that won’t be the last we hear of it. The problem is not necessarily the safety factor but the bigger issue of so many brands not knowing what is in the food they are selling.

The scandal is Europe-wide and not one that can be resolved overnight. A whole rethink of the food supply chain is needed and a debate should be had about the true cost of meat. Looking at the products involved, there is no doubt that intense price competition in certain sectors of the food industry is a major contributing factor to the fact many of us will have unknowingly eaten horse. The scandal is certain to make consumers think twice about buying cheap meat.

This brings us to British meat producers. The British farming industry has for a long time had to conform to some of the strictest animal welfare standards that are not applicable to most of the EU. This has left British farmers’ prices uncompetitive in the rest of the EU and has led to much of the meat sold in Britain being imported from abroad. However, it has made our product a premium one. In the light of recent supply chain issues (as well as a devalued pound) British exports could increase significantly.

Tesco, as the largest food retailer in the UK, has taken the brunt of much of the coverage. In some ways it has been a PR disaster considering only 3 out of 259 products actually contained any horse but Tesco has handled the situation sympathetically. It clearly and very quickly apologised to its customers for its mistakes by taking out full page adverts in the national press, setting up a new food website, speaking at the National Farmers Union (NFU) conference last week and pledging to buy meat from closer to home. This is a move obviously welcomed by the farmers in attendance at the conference who have been pushing British retailers to give greater support to UK farmers for decades. NFU President, Peter Kendall welcomed the news commenting “British farmers [invest] a lot of time, effort and heartache to produce high-quality beef and need to be supported by retailers”.

There are PR opportunities for companies that have forged close links with their suppliers and for that reason have created a genuine product that they can be sure is contaminate-free. For example McDonalds is “very confident” its burgers are free of horsemeat and believes this is because of its close links with its farmers. McDonalds has shown it is possible to sell 100% beef at low prices because of good, sustainable working relationships. Simlarly Waitrose, which never buys on the open market, reported last week via an email to customers that none of its tests have shown any horse contamination. The shortening of the supply chain and building of relationships seems to be the answer to a contamination-free product, as well ensuring a more consistent price of meat for buyers and greater piece of mind for the farmer.

The supermarkets and food processors involved really only have themselves to blame for the whole incident. This story has brought to light what farmers have been saying for a long time. By constantly treating farmers unfairly, and putting pressure on them to produce meat as cheaply as possible, an incident like this was bound to happen at some point. It is now up to the large conglomerates which hold the power in the food industry to make the changes required to restore public confidence in their products. Working more closely with farmers would be a good start. To ensure a contaminate-free product in the future may mean higher prices of meat in the long term, but in terms of paying a fair price for quality product, I believe public opinion is moving in that direction.

Richard Sowler

Follow us on Twitter @AbchurchComms

Electric vehicles are the new black

The electric vehicle market is changing rapidly. Previously, they have tended to conjure images of boxy, plastic-looking automobiles reserved for eco-friendly motorists. But the electric vehicle industry is revamping its image and is now a fast-growing market of attractive cars, which the top automotive manufacturing names are tapping into.

Electric vehicles are not purely about saving money on fuel. Climate change is also a critical issue for many drivers, with July 2012 being the hottest month in US history, and hurricane Sandy another extreme weather condition. Electric vehicles are also essential for the UK consumer market, since 25% of the UK’s generating capacity of non-renewable energy sources will come to an end over the next 10 years.

Formula-E

Lord Paul Drayson, an entrepreneur and former Minister of Science, who spoke at this week’s EV Investor Club’s breakfast conference on cleantech technology, was emphatic that if electric vehicles are to have a future, they must be more glamorous and exciting to all motorists but crucially, the younger generation. This is why he has come up with the FIA Formula-E Championship. In May 2014, 100% electric cars will race on city circuits across the globe in “a street racing festival that leaves no trace.” The event is targeted at a younger market. The races, short but intense, will be streamed live on social media sites and involve what Lord Drayson described as ‘tag-racing’, where in each race the driver takes a pit stop, running 100m to the next car, so the first one can be recharged. In the final race there will be a ‘tweet to boost’ competition running alongside it, where each car will get a power boost in accordance to the size of its twitter support. These electric car races will be going to cities across the globe. First stop will be Rome where the cars will be showcased on a circuit around the Colosseum. With pictures of racing cars to rival McLaren’s, electric cars look set to become a powerful force in the market.

What about the price tag?

Further illustrations of the evolving electric vehicle market came from Iain Saunderson of Lightning Cars, cars which he described as ‘reassuringly expensive’ due to the high-tech technology involved. Although each car comes with an eye-watering €350,000 price tag, they were obviously attractive enough for an audience member to ask Saunderson whether there was an order book, after the presentation. Michael Boxwell’s Bluebird supercar was equally popular with the audience, and is even a contender for the 2013 UK land speed record, a further testimony to just how far technology for electric cars has come.

Beyond the UK market, thriving Australian based electronic scooters business VMoto is now dual listed on the AIM market in London and the ASX market in Australia, and now the number one selling brand in Europe. VMoto’s Michel Fulton explained how prices have come down so they are almost on a par with petrol scooters, with the added benefit that they run at one tenth of the cost.



Chargemaster
charging-points


But what will enable the electric vehicle industry to really take off is accessible charging for consumers. David Martell of Chargemaster described how his charging-point business has grown to be the biggest provider in Europe. Having recently sealed a transaction with Electromotive, Chargemaster now has a 48% share of the European market. Its charging-points are being installed in car parks, shopping centres, hotels, train stations and supermarkets such as Asda and Waitrose, ready for a market which Martell estimates is growing at a rate of 40% per annum.

With the cost of electric vehicles reducing (Renault now offering an electric car priced comparably to their popular Clio model), new marketing initiatives are ensuring that they will become increasingly desirable to a younger target market. As the market grows, electric vehicles will make a real difference to our environment, save consumers money on running costs, and offer another exciting global sporting competition.



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Impact Investment: Doing good whilst making a profit

The launch of Social Impact VCT, enables investors to invest “with both their heads and their hearts” in a tax-advantaged vehicle.

 

 

Yesterday afternoon at our offices we saw the launch of the Social Impact VCT. The fund aims to make use of the existing tax incentive scheme to create a pool of readily available investment capital immediately deployable among socially driven companies in the UK.

 

 

Social Impact VCT features:

1. Support the growth of socially motivated companies which make a distinct positive contribution to improving UK society
2. Capital preservation and predictable cash flows due to focus on established companies and companies whose revenue streams are wholly or partially underpinned by delivery contracts
3. 30% income tax relief in year of investment, tax free dividend and capital gains.
4. Planned Exit: return of capital planned for years 6,7 and 8
5. Dividend planned from year 2 onwards.

The VCT will be managed jointly by FSE Fund Managers and Social Finance. It will focus on profitable and/ or growth companies delivering measurable social impact. As part of the launch we heard from the following two socially motivated companies.

CREATE Foundation is a company aimed at providing a place where people can rebuild their life and hope, in the form of work. It is a “for more than profit” company, this means they run a great business, but profits are ploughed back into training, work experience and jobs for people who need them most. In January 2011, they became only the second company to be awarded a Big Society Award by David Cameron.
CREATE is a social enterprise, and this means that it applies “capitalist strategies to achieving philanthropic goals.” The government defines social enterprises as businesses with social objectives whose surpluses are reinvested in the business or in the community, rather than maximising profit for shareholders and owners.

Another example of a social enterprise is Bromley Healthcare, a new community interest company founded of 800 people who will deliver a wide range of NHS Services to people of all ages. From health visiting to district nursing, school nurses to specialist nurses, their nursing services help new parents to care for new born children and older people to continue living at home through care and support. In addition to this broad range of nursing services they also have a wide range of therapy services for adults and children. This includes speech and language therapy, physiotherapy and occupational therapy.

Both Create and Bromley Healthcare are examples of companies that would benefit from Social Finance’s VCT and would in return offer duel level benefits for the investors (both financial and social).

This is a relatively new asset class, but it is growing. However there is still a problem surrounding the understanding of it. What is needed is the development of a clear message to outline to potential investors the financial returns available from social investments as well as the social benefits delivered. It is not philanthropy, but investment with “twice” the return both financially and socially.

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