A business which installed hundreds of BT-branded WiFi kiosks across the UK has collapsed into administration after encountering delays in obtaining planning permission, The Telegraph reported. InLink entered administration in November after its attempt to build a network of thousands of smart kiosks on roads across the UK faced opposition from local councils as well as the Metropolitan Police. The business was a joint venture between Intersection, an American advertising business which has been backed by Google’s parent company, and outdoor media company Primesight.

Financial services have been too slow to cut investment in fossil fuels, a delay that could lead to a sharp increase in global temperatures, Bank of England governor Mark Carney has warned, the Irish Times reported. Mr Carney, due to become the United Nations’ special envoy for climate change next year when he steps down from the bank, told BBC radio that global warming could render the assets of many financial companies worthless.

Fears over the impact of a chaotic Brexit left banks in a bind as many small businesses held off on borrowing to invest and nervous households squirrelled away more money – at a time when the European Central Bank (ECB) is charging banks a negative rate of 0.5 per cent to leave excess funds with it, The Irish Times reported. The three bailed-out banks’ combined deposits were €12 billion higher than their loan books in June.

Bad weather and belt-tightening hit the traditional start of Christmas discount sales on Thursday, dealing another blow to a high street retail industry blighted by years of shop closures and insolvencies, the Financial Times reported. Boxing Day has long marked the opening of the busy festive sales season, but its importance has waned as shoppers have moved online and retailers offer other promotions — such as November’s Black Friday — in the run-up to Christmas.

When Mexican food chain Chilango offered customers the chance to invest in its “burrito bonds” last year, it promised annual returns of 8 per cent and free food for life. It was part of a new wave of early stage restaurant businesses that have found creative — and sometimes risky — ways to finance their expansion at a time when cost pressures and competition in the sector are at all time highs, the Financial Times reported.

U.K. retail sales posted a surprise fall in November, marking a fourth straight month without growth for the first time since at least 1996, Bloomberg News reported. The volume of goods sold in stores and online fell 0.6%, the largest decline this year, the Office for National Statistics said Thursday. Economists had expected a 0.2% increase. Sales excluding auto fuel also dropped 0.6%. The headline measure has now failed to increase since July, the longest period without an expansion since the ONS’s records began 23 years ago.

Britain took a step into uncharted territory this year, aiming to make its banks safer. But it might have just driven risk to places where it’s less manageable than before, Bloomberg News reported. The experiment -- the result of an analysis of how the financial crisis damaged Britain’s economy -- began Jan. 1. Big lenders were “ring-fenced”: retail deposit-taking was legally separated from riskier activities, primarily investment banking. Advocates compared ring-fencing to the U.S. Glass-Steagall act, passed after the 1929 crash.

As part of a global restructuring plan, the staff of ESL UK have taken voluntary redundancy (layoffs), the regional entity’s Managing Director James Dean has confirmed, The Esports Observer reported. Event UK series such as the ESL Premiership will continue under the support of centralized teams in Poland and Germany.  “The ESL UK mission has always been to grow UK esports and we remain 100% committed to that cause,” said Dean in a press release.

British accountants could be required to look for fraud at companies they audit under proposals made in a government-backed review of recent corporate scandals which went undetected, Reuters reported. Lawmakers called for a shake-up of auditing after the collapses of construction company Carillion, retailer BHS and travel firm Thomas Cook and commissioned a review by former London Stock Exchange chairman Donald Brydon.

Irish banking stocks fell in Dublin on Tuesday as the Bank of England ordered lenders with businesses in the UK hold additional capital to absorb losses in the event of a sudden downturn, The Irish Times reported. Sentiment towards the sector was further dented as UK prime minister Boris Johnson put the threat of a no-deal Brexit back on the table as he outlined plans to legislate to ensure the transition phase of the European Union withdrawal will not extend beyond the end of 2020.