The activist investor calling for Sony to spin off its film and music business tore into Sony Entertainment's management yesterday, saying the division was treated like a "red-headed stepchild".

The Analyst

US prosecutors mounted an aggressive legal assault on the giant SAC Capital hedge fund yesterday, alleging in a rare criminal case that insider trading "was substantial, pervasive and on a scale without known precedent in the hedge fund industry".

On a day when traders' screens turned red and the market dived more than 30 points, Shire was breaking records.

One of the most exciting innovations of recent times has been the development of social-impact bonds. These are loans raised in the markets or from private investors where the money is invested to finance and improve the social outcomes delivered by publicly funded services and the return on the bonds is linked to the success of the venture.

It is still difficult to see interest rates in the UK rising before the next general election.

A former Foreign Legionnaire and a retired Army head are fighting M&G and a genius tycoon for control of their £1.5bn oil giant. With the final showdown looming in the Caribbean, Gideon Spanier reports from the frontline

Economic View: I personally find it astounding that the West could have allowed such a build up of debt to occur

Tory strategist’s links to cigarette giant pile pressure on PM after  tobacco policy U-turn

US Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke has introduced the term ‘taper’ to the lexicon of central banking. European Central Bank President Mario Draghi’s stated strategy is “whatever it takes”. Economic Commissioner Olli Rehn recently clarified that European policies were directed at ‘diluting’ not ‘breaking’ the link between banks and sovereigns.

The Analyst

A huge surge in bond trading after the United States Federal Reserve shook markets with plans to slow its money-printing programme failed to save broking giant Icap from a City sell-off yesterday.

David Cameron and William Hague got into similar trouble, but for exactly opposite reasons. If the Foreign Secretary had said “stupid person” or (admittedly a bit of a mouthful for an impromptu sedentary aside) “stupid Honourable Member”, he’d be home free. As the lip reading consensus was that he muttered “stupid woman” while Cameron was answering, or more accurately not answering, a hostile question from Labour’s Cathy Jamieson, he quickly became Twitter villain of the day.