Headlines

The Indian government needs to enhance the effectiveness of the insolvency framework, simplify tax structures for bonds, and ensure greater coordination between agencies to boost investor confidence in corporate debt, the Economic Survey for 2025-26 said on Thursday, LiveMint.com reported. The regulators have taken several measures over the years to deepen the corporate bond market, but coordinated and phased reforms are needed to further strengthen it and lower the cost of credit for Indian companies, the survey said.

The number of UK businesses in “critical” financial distress is surging as firms grapple with an increased tax burden, unpredictable economic outlook and rising costs, according to insolvency specialist Begbies Traynor, Bloomberg News reported. Corporate distress increased 43.8% in the fourth quarter compared with a year earlier, and all 22 sectors covered by the firm’s proprietary Red Flag Alert tracker saw a deterioration in their financial health. Distress was up 21.3% compared with the previous quarter, Begbies Traynor said in a report published Thursday.

The Original Factory Shop has fallen into administration, putting the future of the chain’s 137 stores and 1,180 staff at risk, The Independent reported. The discount retailer appointed administrators from Interpath Advisory on Wednesday and will continue to trade from its stores across the UK as the insolvency experts assess options in a bid to keep it afloat. While all online sales made before Wednesday will be delivered as normal, online operations have now been shut down.

The $2tn (£1.5tn) private credit industry is being quizzed by the City watchdog over fears its unrecognised losses could fuel a financial system meltdown, the Telegraph revealed. Officials from the Financial Conduct Authority have in recent weeks been piling pressure on so-called shadow banks – an increasingly critical source of funding for the speculative AI boom – to more rigorously mark down the value of loans that are at risk of not being repaid in full.

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Mexican Secretary of Economy Marcelo Ebrard agreed on Wednesday to begin formal discussions on possible reforms to the United States-Mexico-Canada trade agreement, Greer's office said, Reuters reported. Possible reforms for the USMCA Joint ​Review include stronger rules of origin for industrial goods, more collaboration on critical minerals, increasing efforts to defend workers and producers, and U.S.-Mexican ‌efforts to combat "the relentless dumping of manufactured goods in our region," the USTR's office said in a statement.

Bank ​of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem told Reuters he saw unusual potential for a new shock to the economy, given ‌elevated geopolitical risks and U.S. trade policy, Reuters reported. Macklem said in an interview on Wednesday that more factors than usual could deter Canada from achieving the bank's economic forecasts, citing U.S. President Donald Trump's threats toward Greenland, his removal of Venezuela's leader, and repeated threats to impose more tariffs on Canada.

The Irish economy grew at an accelerated rate of 12.6 per cent in gross domestic product (GDP) terms last year as multinationals front-loaded goods exports into the US to avoid tariffs, the Irish Times reported. The Central Statistics Office (CSO) cautioned that its estimate of GDP growth for 2025 was preliminary and based on “incomplete” data sources. If confirmed, however, it will make Ireland the fastest-growing economy in Europe and one of the fastest in the world.

The head of Russia's lower house of the country’s parliament on Thursday said that crypto market regulations will be ready by June of this year and come into force on July 1, 2027, CoinDesk.com reported. Anatoly Aksakov, head of the State Duma Committee on Financial Markets, said that qualified and unqualified investors will be allowed to purchase cryptocurrencies although under separate rules, according to the Duma’s official news outlet. A cap will be in place on retail investors' crypto purchases with the figure of 300,000 rubles ($4,000) being discussed, he added.

The crypto-focused subsidiary of Japan’s largest investment bank has joined the growing list of digital asset firms seeking a coveted banking charter from the U.S. Treasury Department, Decrypt.com reported. The subsidiary, Laser Digital, is based in Switzerland and owned by the Nomura Group, the Tokyo investment banking and brokerage giant. On Tuesday evening, Laser announced it had filed an application with the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to form a national trust bank.

A director of a payroll company who moved millions to a Montenegrin bank while his company was insolvent has been disqualified for seven years, BBC.com reported. The Insolvency Service said Paul Bresnihan, from Leicester-based CJS Engagement 2 Ltd, transferred €4.8m (£4.17m) to an account in Europe at a time when the company owed HMRC more than £32m. It said that Bresnihan "did not provide an explanation for the money transfers", and "has not co-operated" with attempts to recover the money.