Peter Cullum pulls Towergate sale
By Matthew Rock & Real Deals
Entrepreneur behind insurance broking giant backs off sale to Candover.

Islamic Finance to encourage "ethical entrepreneurs"
By Melissa Hancock
The Islamic Bank of Britain (IBB) has been riding the wave of Islamic Finance in this country. Now it’s turning its attention to supporting ethical enterprise in Birmingham.

Think your FD's great? Check out these
By Catherine Woods
Britain's top finance directors are revealed today, in sister title Real FD's shortlists for the FDs' Excellence Awards, held with the CBI. For entrepreneurs, one name stands out.

Britain’s biggest start-up to be sold for 1p
By Matthew Rock & Real Deals
Picture Financial, the personal loans business that claimed to be the UK’s biggest ever start-up, has become the victim of its very own financial crisis.

Islamic finance praises Darling's Budget
By Melissa Hancock
Amidst the general all-round grumbling over this year’s “boring Budget”, there’s one area of the economy that looks set to benefit from Darling’s latest announcements – that of Islamic finance.

Crisp entrepreneur in private equity deal
By Stuart Rock
Tyrell's Potato Chips is set to take on private equity backing

Entrepreneurs mull over SFLG measures in Budget
By Catherine Woods
Alistair Darling’s promise to boost the Small Firms Loan Guarantee scheme by £60m has received a lukewarm response from entrepreneurs although there’s concern the structure of the initiative is still an impediment for businesses seeking funds.

The Budget backlash
By Kate Pritchard
“This is a desperate Budget from a devalued Chancellor.” And it gets worse. After Chancellor Alistair Darling dropped his pearls of wisdom this afternoon, we rounded up the response to this year’s Budget.

Budget 2008: The impact on entrepreneurs
By Catherine Woods
There will be more cash available to entrepreneurs through the Small Firms Loan Guarantee Scheme, smaller companies will be given greater assistance to win government contracts while Alistair Darling has also confirmed a pot of money to encourage women entrepreneurs.

The rise of Islamic Finance
By Melissa Hancock
With the industry growing at 15 per cent a year, Islamic finance is undergoing a revolution. As Humphrey Percy, CEO of the Bank of London and the Middle East points out: “In the last four years, no fewer than four Islamic finance institutions have emerged in the UK.”