Keystone Law CEO says demand for lawyers is easing

The CEO of law firm Keystone Law said demand for lawyers is cooling off from the “exceptionally high” levels of the post-Covid era, amid a slowdown in City dealmaking.

James Knight said demand for corporate lawyers rocketed after lockdowns ended, which was driving legal salaries up, but this was now coming to an end.

“It’s cyclical,” he said. “It can’t remain red hot forever.

“We haven’t seen the phase where law firms are making redundancies. Maybe we won’t, it’s hard to predict.”

He added that a slowdown in demand could be beneficial to Keystone, as it uses self-employed lawyers whose pay is mostly based on their own fees, so it can fare better when salaries are lower.

The firm reported revenue of £75.3 million for the year to 31 January, up by 8.1%, and profit of £9.2 million, up 6.3%.

Keystone shares dipped by 3p to 465p today.

Rishi Sunak promises to open up procurement to small business

Rishi Sunak has said he plans to open up governmnent procurement contracts to small businesses by tearing up rules over procurement applications.

“As prime minister I’m focused on creating the right conditions for your business to succeed. I believe the most important thing I can do is listen to businesses big and small,” he said.

The PM also said he had expanded the government’s global talent visa to include AI rules, and would be funding “hundreds if not thousands” of AI courses.

PM calls for regulatory streamlining for life sciences

The Prime Minister said he wanted to see a more “nimble” regulatory system for life sciences in order to springboard growth.

In response to a question from GlaxoSmithKline CEO Dame Emma Walmsley, Sunak said more simplified regulation was the key to unlocking growth in tech and life sciences.

“We need to look at how we can change our regulatory system, especially after Brexit, so we can be nimble, we can be agile and we can be the first to take advantage of changes,” he said.

FTSE 100 down as miners struggle, ASOS off 4%

Glencore and BP shares have fallen 2% as fears over the outlook for global demand continue to put pressure on commodity prices.

Anglo American and Shell also dropped by more than 1% to leave the FTSE 100 index 13.96 points lower at 7900.47 in early dealings.

Other fallers included Prudential, which dropped 11p to 1140.5p despite analysts at Deutsche Bank raising their price target to 1550p.

The FTSE 250 index retreated 25.04 points to 19,244.97, with fast fashion group ASOS down 4% or 33.8p to 750.6p. Wizz Air rose 3% or 88p to 2866p.

Rishi Sunak takes questions from business leaders on LinkedIn

Rishi Sunak is about to begin a live Q&A on LinkedIn with members of the business community, the first of its kind he has hosted as Prime Minister.

Accesso makes $10 million ski resort tech acquisition

Queueing software provider Accesso technology has acquired Canadian ski resort tech supplier Paradocs for $10 million.

Accesso will pay $9 million in cash and $1 million in shares for the business, which serves 48 resorts in Canada and two in the US.

“Accesso is passionate about serving the ski industry, and incorporating Paradocs’ specific expertise and experience into our offering is a powerful step forward in addressing the unique and evolving technology demands of the burgeoning ski market,” Accesso CEO  Steve Brown said.

“Adding this contemporary and powerful solution to our offering supports Accesso’s long-standing commitment to serving as the industry’s premier ski solutions provider.”

FTSE 100 seen lower at start of big results week

The FTSE 100 index is expected to open slightly lower this morning as attention turns to the start of London’s first quarter results season.

This week will see figures from the likes of Barclays, GSK and Reckitt Benckiser, with Meta Platforms and Alphabet among the tech heavyweights reporting on Wall Street.

The FTSE 100 added 0.2% for a fourth consecutive weekly rise on Friday, but CMC Markets expects the top flight to open 14 points lower at 7900 this morning.

It follows a mixed session for Asia markets, while the price of oil continues to come under pressure after Brent crude futures today dipped 1.5% to $80.48 a barrel.

Medica becomes London’s latest private equity target

Radiology firm Medica has become the latest London-listed company to be subject of a private equity takeover, agreeing a £269 million deal to be sold to IK Partners.

IK would pay 212p per Medica share, 32.5% more than its closing share price on Friday.

The private equity group, founded in Sweden but now headquartered in London, said Medica would be better able to expand internationally in countries like the US with funding from private markets.

“The board of Medica believes that the offer from Bidco represents an attractive and certain value in cash today for Medica shareholders which reflects our reputation as a leading, high-quality teleradiology and wider telemedicine provider with a compelling service offering,” Medica CEO Roy Davis said.

“The board of Medica believes that IK Partners is a strong and credible partner for the business and is well positioned to support its next phase of development, including accelerating investment in the company which will benefit our customers and their patients going forward.”

Credit Suisse Q1 outflows revealed

Collapsed bank Credit Suisse today revealed asset outflows of 61.2 billion Swiss francs (£55.2 billion) for the first quarter.

The run accelerated amid the turmoil triggered by the failures of Silicon Valley Bank in the US towards the end of March.

In its last set of results before the completion of a state-backed rescue by UBS, the bank said: “Credit Suisse experienced significant net asset outflows, in particular in the second half of March. These outflows have moderated but have not yet reversed as of 24 April.”

The bank’s wealth management division reported assets of 502.5 billion francs (£453.1 billion), down from 707 billion francs a year earlier.

Surge in first-quarter profit warnings amid economic uncertainty

The number of profit warnings at UK-listed companies has soared to 75 between January and March 2023, the highest first quarter total since the early stages of the pandemic in 2020, new research has found.

More than a third (35%) of profit warnings cited delayed, reviewed, or cancelled contracts, up from 21% in the same period in 2022, according to research by EY, as customers paused or cut spending amid volatile and unreliable demand.

Of the 31 companies that have issued three warnings since the start of 2022, 29% have since delisted or are in the process of being sold. This marks a greater-than-average market dropout rate, as typically just one-in-five companies delist within a year of their third warning, most due to insolvency.

Jo Robinson, EY-Parthenon Partner, said: “This economic uncertainty risks prolonging recovery, even as forecasts improve. Many companies may struggle to build momentum as they contend with increased working capital demands and finance costs.

“We would normally expect to see insolvency activity peak nine to twelve months after a profit warning peak, so the coming year will be crucial. While the UK economy appears to be turning a corner, recovery is not guaranteed. Businesses should continue scenario planning and building solid operational and financial foundations to withstand further shocks and capitalise on growth.”