IMF says tax the rich

Wednesday 8th January

Get straight to the good stuff every day with the Multiply Minute; a lightning-quick round-up of the money news and how it affects you.

IMF 180 on tax

Kristalina Georgieva, head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), has said raising taxes on high earners would reduce inequality and can be done without damaging economic growth. It’s a big change of heart for the IMF, which bails out bankrupt economies and issues policy advice, and has previously advocated for tax cuts for the wealthy.

Travel money chaos

The Travelex ransomware saga chugs on with customers left disappointed and out of pocket by the foreign currency trader's debilitating cyber-attack. Thousands of holidaymakers' money is in limbo with little information on when, how or if the problem will be resolved. The criminals behind the hack are demanding $6 million (£4.8 million) from the currency trader.

Pension funds pressure Barclays

A group of institutional investors with shares in Barclays has called on the bank to stop lending to fossil fuel companies. Campaign group Share Action, backed by shareholders, has filed a resolution urging Barclays to phase out their dealings with companies that are failing to meet Paris climate accord targets. We’ll find out what Barclays thinks in May, when it’s voted on at their annual general meeting.

More Woodford woes

The failure of the Woodford fund had another twist in store for investors yesterday as it was revealed the money manager and his business partner pocketed a cool £13.8 million in the financial year before the collapse of the fund. At least 300,000 people still have money locked into the fund which is due to be wound up on the 18th January.

Lawbreaking bosses

An estimated 11,000 UK companies paid workers less than minimum wage last year, but only 1,456 of them were caught by HMRC. It’s feared even more bosses could try and get away with underpaying when the minimum wage goes up in April.