Business

A 31-year-old cryptocurrency entrepreneur has stunned the tech world by raising more than £750m ($1.1bn) to build Britain’s biggest artificial intelligence data centre — despite his company never having completed one before. Josh Payne’s start-up Nscale, founded just 18 months ago, has secured heavyweight backing from Nvidia, Nokia and Norwegian investment giant Aker. The deal catapults the business into the …

Artificial intelligence data centres are set to devour a massive share of the world’s electricity growth over the next decade, according to BP’s latest World Energy Outlook. The oil giant estimates that data facilities powering AI applications will account for 10% of global electricity demand growth by 2035. In the United States, the world’s most advanced AI hub, that figure …

Karachi: The Aga Khan University Hospital (AKUH) marked World Pharmacists Day with an awareness walk and a cake-cutting ceremony at the AKU Sports and Rehabilitation Centre, celebrating the indispensable role pharmacists play in advancing patient safety, optimising treatment, and improving health outcomes. Centred on this year’s global theme, “Think Health, Think Pharmacist”, the event brought together AKUH leadership, pharmacy professionals, …

Karachi: The Islamic Chamber of Commerce and Development held its Halal Fashion Conference 2025 in Karachi, bringing together fashion experts, trade bodies, business owners, among other stakeholders for a highly charged and impactful dialogue around the evolving demands of the Halal fashion industry in Pakistan and globally. The Conference is organized in collaboration with the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of …

The pound fell sharply on Wednesday after Andrew Bailey suggested the Bank of England could cut interest rates if inflation eases further, in remarks that underscored the fragility of the UK economy. Sterling slipped 0.7 per cent against the dollar to $1.34 after the governor said there was “a further journey down” possible for borrowing costs, though any cuts would …

Rachel Reeves is facing a mounting revolt from Britain’s business leaders, with chiefs across sectors warning that her tax hikes and labour reforms are throttling investment, driving out wealth, and tipping the economy toward recession. BT chief executive Allison Kirkby (pictured) warned this week that Britain is already at “peak government-inflicted costs.” Speaking at the Connected Britain conference, she revealed …

The government is weighing extraordinary measures to shield Britain’s manufacturing base from the fallout of Jaguar Land Rover’s crippling cyberattack, including buying up parts from suppliers to prevent mass job losses. Business Secretary Peter Kyle is understood to be considering a scheme where ministers would purchase parts from JLR’s 700-strong supplier network and sell them back once production resumes. The …

The Co-op has revealed that a “sophisticated cyberattack” earlier this year has wiped out £80m of profits, underlining the mounting cost of cybercrime for Britain’s biggest companies. In results published this morning, the mutual said the hack disrupted its grocery and funeral operations, leaving gaps on shelves and delaying services, with an estimated £206m hit to revenues. The group said …

Lloyds Banking Group will close another 49 branches across its Lloyds Bank, Halifax and Bank of Scotland brands next year, in the latest blow to Britain’s high streets. The closures, which will take place between January and October 2026, mark a further retreat from in-person banking as millions of customers move online. Lloyds said the shift reflects changing habits, with …

Forget bricks and mortar — from Oscars to rare whisky, luxury assets are becoming the new collateral of choice in Britain’s growing bridging market. Suros Capital, a specialist in lending against high-value possessions, is carving out a niche by financing deals secured against everything from Warhol paintings and Rolex watches to gold bullion and Banksy prints. Ray Palmer, director at …