A European-wide Systemic Risk Board and three separate agencies will be set up to monitor securities, banks and insurance companies, but Britain has been assured the deal will not weaken its sovereignty.

The FSA has imposed a lifetime ban on David Marriott, the former chief executive of two insurance intermediaries, for persistent misuse of client money.

Twitter has edged just ahead of Facebook to become British enterprises' favourite social network, research suggests.

Coventry Building Society has completed its merger with Stroud & Swindon Building Society, in a deal that will migrate 200,000 customers and cut their mortgage interest rates.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned long-term fiscal reforms will be required among advanced economies as it projected the UK's gross debt to GDP would rise to 90.6% in 2015.

The eurozone and US must learn from each other's economic strategies

A cooling global economy and an impending austerity squeeze in Britain will make the Bank of England (BoE) wait well into next year before hiking interest rates, a poll of 60 economists suggests.

Leading fund managers have staked their reputations, and their clients' money, on a sustained UK economic recovery by upping their holdings of shares and reducing their positions in bonds in the past month.

A consortium of IFAs and investors in Lifemark, including Norwich & Peterborough (N&P), have united to try to save the troubled fund, amid criticism Keydata founder Stewart Ford is making "impossible" promises to investors.

The FTSE opened lower in morning trade on Tuesday as investor confidence was hit by stock sell-offs in the US and Asia.