HOWZAT

Approved Financial Solutions, the Derbyshire mortgage broker, has been fined £63,000 by the Financial Services Authority, the City watchdog, for failing to ensure that it gave suitable advice and information to its customers. The company had allowed people to apply for mortgages that they could not afford.

RAB Capital revealed that Philip Richards would be stepping down as chief executive, as the embattled hedge fund manager suffers from a profit warning, a sliding share price and a collection of ill-fated investments, including Northern Rock, the nationalised mortgage bank. Mr Richards will be succeeded by Stephen Couttie, chief operating officer and finance director.

Financial Services Authority Neel and Matthew Uberoi, a father and son accused of insider trading, have tried to have their case dismissed on procedural grounds. The Financial Services Authority, the City watchdog which is bringing the prosecution, is contesting the application.

Lloyd’s Lord Levene of Portsoken, the chairman of Lloyd’s of London, has made a fresh assault on government tax policies, arguing that the dominance of the world’s largest insurance market was coming under threat because of Treasury dithering.

Construction & property

DTZ Holdings, the property adviser, said that the economic consequences of the credit crunch and rising inflation would probably be felt until 2010 at least.

First Property Group the AIM-listed property services group that specialises in commercial property fund management, said it was continuing to work on the acquisition of about €60 million (£48.6 million) of property, which it hoped to report on in the near future.

Consumer goods

Unilever, the Anglo-Dutch consumer products group, has named Paul Polman, the US head of Nestlé, the Swiss food group, as its new chief executive, ahead of four internal candidates vying for the top job. Mr Polman will replace Patrick Cescau, who will retire at the end of the year.

McBride, which makes household and personal products, reported a 30 per cent fall in full-year operating profits to £21.4 million as the rising cost of raw materials took its toll, but added that it had made a satisfactory start to the fiscal year.

Engineering

Boeing, the US aircraft maker, returned to conciliation talks after the International Association of Machinists, its largest trade union, gave it 48 hours to improve its pay offer or face a strike that could delay its 787 Dreamliner project.

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