
Stability was the Chancellor’s watchword, but business heard strain instead. Advisers across law and accountancy say the Autumn Budget leans heavily on tax rises for owners, investors, and high earners, while offering only narrow windows and targeted reliefs for those prepared to plan ahead. Businesses face greater complexity and pressure.

Rachel Reeves has delivered a tax-heavy Autumn Budget for business. Markets have taken the measures in their stride, but leaders now face a higher, more complex tax burden and big questions about investment, skills, and productivity that our BQX deep-dive will unpack in full, as they plan for 2026 ahead.

Two in five invoices reach finance teams with errors. New data from Basware shows automation could reclaim hundreds of hours and bring oversight to $549bn in unmanaged spend.

Crédit Agricole sets ambitious sustainable finance targets for 2028. The Paris-based bank aims for a 90/10 green-brown ratio, facilitating €240 billion in transition financing and achieving €1 billion in sustainable finance revenues by 2028.

Rachel Reeves’ fintech strategy faces criticism from industry founders. Over a third of fintech founders criticised the UK Treasury’s approach, with some considering relocating overseas. Concerns grow over potential tax measures in the upcoming Budget.

One in three SME loans now puts directors’ homes at risk. New data from Purbeck Insurance Services reveals a sharp rise in personal guarantee-backed borrowing among UK business owners, prompting fresh warnings over financial exposure and calls for government clarity ahead of the next fiscal statement.

Barclays and Santander lead in net account switch losses. Barclays and Santander saw significant net losses in current account switches, while Nationwide gained the most customers. Technical outages affected customer retention at major banks.

Corpay moves to acquire UK-based Alpha Group International. The £1.8 billion all-cash agreement will see the London-listed payments and foreign-exchange provider become part of the U.S. financial services group. The deal extends Corpay’s reach into Europe’s institutional markets and highlights renewed overseas appetite for UK-listed fintech businesses.

GoodData has unveiled new AI-native data intelligence tools. The composable platform brings audit-ready automation and governance to banks, insurers, and financial institutions, combining regulatory compliance with scalable innovation across core financial operations.

Smart data transforms revenue operations in the subscription economy. Lindsey Meyl, Vice President of Revenue Operations at iManage, explains how businesses shifting from acquisition-focused funnels to recurring growth models must rethink how data informs every stage of the customer lifecycle, using AI-powered insights to drive sustainable performance.