Visa is considering offering incentives for British businesses to go cashless. The payments company is already offering selected firms in America $10,000 (£7,700) to use only cards.
Debit cards have now overtaken cash as the most popular form of payment in this country, according to the British Retail Consortium. Cash accounted for 42% of transactions last year, while debit card payments rose 5% to 43%. Spending on credit cards was down.
Where there’s an email, there’s a will
The Law Commission is seeking views on how to modernise wills. Proposals include allowing emails or voicemails to be used in place of paper wills.
Brits spend more time overseas
Visits abroad by UK residents increased by 8.1% in the first three months of the year compared with the same period of 2016, the Office for National Statistics reported.
House-price rise at four-year low
House prices are rising at their slowest rate for more than four years, according to Halifax. The year-on-year UK increase in the three months to June was 2.4%, compared with 3.6% in the previous quarter. The slowdown was even sharper in London, with prices up just 0.8% over the past 12 months. By contrast, the East Midlands posted the biggest regional rise at 9.7%.
Advertisement
The bank blamed the slowdown on high prices and stamp duty, economic uncertainty and flagging buy-to-let demand.
“Finally this absurd injustice has been consigned to the history books”
John Walker, a gay former cavalry officer, after winning a Supreme Court fight to leave his pension fund to his husband
Retirees use homes to borrow £1.25bn
Retired homeowners borrowed £1.25bn against their homes using equity release schemes in the first half of this year — a rate of £6.9m a day — according to a report from the over-55s financial adviser Key Retirement. The total is 34% higher than the £934m taken out in the first half of 2016.
The report said the average pensioner had released £70,625 of equity to fund holidays and home improvements, pay off credit card debts and help relatives financially.
How the Footsie has performed
The FTSE 100 rose 27 points to end the week at 7,378, as Janet Yellen, head of America’s Federal Reserve, quashed speculation of a sharp increase in interest rates.
Advertisement
+10.9% over a year (up 15.9% with dividends)
+9.4 over three years (up 23.2% with dividends)
+30.2 over five years (up 57.7% with dividends)
+9.9 over ten years (up 60.7% with dividends)
Inflation: In May, CPI was 2.9% and RPI was 3.7%