featured articles
THE BIG READ: How a Scottish firm secured iconic James Bond brand – and restored its greatness
Scotland has the sovereign capability to become one of the world’s leading advanced manufacturing nations, particularly in green precision engineering and industrial manufacturing across defence, automotive, agriculture, space tech, and...
HEALTHY FINANCE: Lothian Pension Fund’s £11bn delivers strong growth for 39,000 public sector retirees
Scotland’s second-largest local government pension scheme, Lothian Pension Fund, with over £11.1bn in assets under management, has achieved an investment return of 8.7 per cent, with three and five-year annualised...
END OF AN ERA: Sir Bill Gammell’s oil company taken over in £271m deal
Edinburgh-based oil and gas firm Capricorn Energy — formerly Sir Bill Gammell’s Cairn Energy — has accepted a £271m cash takeover offer from London-based Genel Energy. The sale will mean...
FIRST CLASS HONOURS: Edinburgh University top of the league for Scottish spin-outs
The University of Edinburgh has emerged as Scotland’s most active spinout institution. With graduands collecting their degree scrolls over the next two weeks, many more university leavers will be considering...
Shetland Islands make major step towards £1.5bn Faroe-style subsea tunnels
Shetland Islands councillors have approved recommendations for Faroe Islands-style subsea tunnels from Mainland to Yell, and North Yell to Unst. The islands could have such tunnels within eight years if...
COUNTDOWN: Space tech radar firm, Sofant Technologies raising funds as it aims for stars
An Edinburgh-based technology company which has invented micro-radio transmitters and receivers for aviation and space satellites is one of Scotland’s most exciting new generation companies. Sofant Technologies is now raising...
WHISKY GALORE: Angus MacMillan, a Hebridean business visionary, creates Benbecula Distillery
Visionary Hebridean businessman Angus MacMillan was inspired to found Benbecula Distillery to ensure that locals could forge a life on the island. Angus MacMillan’s early career as an industrial engineer...
Deals & DealMakers
Scottish young companies pull in record amount of risk capital
A record 76 funders backed Scottish companies with risk capital for the first time in 2025, up from 73 in 2024, according to the latest Annual Newcomers Report from Young Company Finance...
Archangels win angel industry gong after half year boost
Archangels, the Edinburgh-based angel investment syndicate, has leveraged £17.9m of investment in Scottish scale-ups in the first half of 2026, backing early-stage technology and life science companies. Adding to this...
THE BIG READ: How a Scottish firm secured iconic James Bond brand – and restored its greatness
Scotland has the sovereign capability to become one of the world’s leading advanced manufacturing nations, particularly in green precision engineering and industrial manufacturing across defence, automotive, agriculture, space tech, and...
Business
Scottish hotels urged to take action on £63m hike in business rates
Scotland’s hotels – scorched by a combined £63 million increase in rates – are being urged to ‘use or lose’ their right to appeal against increases to their rateable values...
How to ensure charities mean business
The first of a four-part series with The Business, supported by CHAS, looking at how third-sector organisations can learn from business and what businesses can do for charities Every single...
The Big Interview: Andrew Malcolm and his love for Royal Highland Show
According to Andrew Malcolm, chief executive officer of The Malcolm Group, one of Scotland’s most recognised businesses, it has never been tougher for businesses like his. However with the straight-talking...
Economy
Scottish young companies pull in record amount of risk capital
A record 76 funders backed Scottish companies with risk capital for the first time in 2025, up from 73 in 2024, according to the latest Annual Newcomers Report from Young Company Finance...
Archangels win angel industry gong after half year boost
Archangels, the Edinburgh-based angel investment syndicate, has leveraged £17.9m of investment in Scottish scale-ups in the first half of 2026, backing early-stage technology and life science companies. Adding to this...
CLARION CALL: Energy alliance presses Andy Burnham to back North Sea oil drilling
A powerful cross-industry group led by North Sea energy producers has delivered a letter to the new Prime Minister Andy Burnham, warning that policymakers must back homegrown oil and gas...
Energy, Just Transition & Net Zero
Hepworth takes on top job at Scottish Renewables
Angela Hepworth has been appointed chief executive officer of Scottish Renewables, taking over from Claire Mack, who is moving to SSEN Transmission. Hepworth will step into the role next week...
END OF AN ERA: Sir Bill Gammell’s oil company taken over in £271m deal
Edinburgh-based oil and gas firm Capricorn Energy — formerly Sir Bill Gammell’s Cairn Energy — has accepted a £271m cash takeover offer from London-based Genel Energy. The sale will mean...
Power Shift: Minister signals Scotland’s moment to lead the energy transition
The UK’s Energy Minister used the platform of the UK’s largest energy conference to set out his stall for the country’s clean energy transition making it clear that Scotland is...
Legal
Martyn’s Law 2027: how the Terrorism Protection Act will impact UK events, venues and security
The new Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025 (also known as Martyn’s Law) will have implications in many business sectors, especially for venues and events with a capacity of over...
Renewable energy developments on croft land offers opportunities for rural Scotland
Scotland’s drive towards net zero by 2045 continues to create significant opportunities for renewable energy and infrastructure development across Scotland. Advances in onshore wind, solar and battery storage technology and...
Martyn’s Law 2027: how the Terrorism Protection Act will impact UK events, venues and security
The new Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025 (also known as Martyn’s Law) will have implications in many business sectors, especially for venues and events with a capacity of over...
Renewable energy developments on croft land offers opportunities for rural Scotland
Scotland’s drive towards net zero by 2045 continues to create significant opportunities for renewable energy and infrastructure development across Scotland. Advances in onshore wind, solar and battery storage technology and...
Property & Housing
Accountancy
‘It’s a year of looking back at the heritage but hang on, it’s about the future’
Johnston Carmichael is celebrating its 90th anniversary. Its chief executive, Lynne Walker, is already focused on getting to 100 years and beyond In 1936, towards the end of the Great...
Chartered accountants add to clamour for tax system reform in Scotland
Why are Scottish chartered accountants are calling for tax reform? ICAS members highlight findings in a recent survey that show Income Tax and National Insurance, ahead of Business Rates, Council...
TEN YEARS AFTER BREXIT: Are we learning from our mistakes? How global finance impacts us all
Dr Russell Napier, the founder of the Library of Mistakes, gives a lesson in how global finance impacts us all. Dr Russell Napier, founder of the Library of Mistakes and...
Why early insolvency advice gives businesses more options to manage financial distress
Recent headlines have painted a grim picture of Scotland’s corporate health. Government figures show a 6 per cent year-on-year increase in company insolvencies recorded in April 2026, while advisory and...
Getting your plans in place for the biggest holiday of them all: Financial advice for retirement
There is an abundance of information on retirement planning. Making the right financial decisions about how much money you need, understanding your pension or where to invest can be a...
Accountants Plus open new head office in Motherwell
Lanarkshire accountancy and business advisory firm Accountants Plus has reached a milestone with a new headquarters in Motherwell, a highly visible symbol of the firm’s commercial success and future ambition....
Scotland's Finest
Laings going for gold in return to Argyll Arcade in Glasgow
Luxury jeweller Laings is opening a showroom in the company’s former Argyll Arcade store in Glasgow. The arcade remains one of Scotland’s best known and most popular places for jewellery...
FEELING THE HEAT: Masterchef Dean Banks hits out a crippling taxes on hospitality sector
The 1925 at the Pompadour restaurant in The Caledonian Edinburgh has every right to claim its crown among Scotland’s finest. For generations the place has hosted kings, queens, political leaders...
The local heroes who know premium homes market
There is a global market for Scotland’s premium homes. But selling them is mostly entrusted to local firms There is a curious mixture of envy and admiration when we delve...
Local know-how meeting city’s property needs
Behnam Afshar, a director of AMA Homes, which has been in the housing market for more than 40 years, says local knowledge plays an essential part in meeting local needs....
New owners making waves in Port Edgar Marina
There is much happening at the tranquil, picturesque Port Edgar Marina Just across from San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge, the waterfront community of Sausalito is where movie and music stars...
The ‘world’s best’ surf park is right in heart of Scotland
Park and ride: Lost Shore Surf Resort has been acclaimed as the world’s best surf park – with good reason Step into a Scottish stay with a difference this spring,...
Arts, Culture & Tourism
Edinburgh’s festivals: Are we playing with fire?
They bring £0.5bn into the capital every year. But insiders say we are in danger of killing the golden goose of Edinburgh festivals by continuing to treat them as cash...
The high-wire juggling act for Edinburgh Fringe event organisers
What are the key elements of ensuring sustainability for performing arts organisations, business events and venues? What are the trade-offs between box office returns and maintaining creative innovation and astonishing...
Edinburgh Fringe Festival is open for business
Love the Fringe’s corporate membership programme gives Scottish businesses a compelling reason to invest in the world’s greatest arts festival — and a tangible return on every pound spent. Every...
Philanthropy
Beyond the numbers on inward investment in Scotland, Angela McCann of Morgan Stanley explains
I have been reflecting recently on how we measure successful inward investment. While the traditional focus on the number of jobs remains important, today there is a range of additional...
How to ensure charities mean business
The first of a four-part series with The Business, supported by CHAS, looking at how third-sector organisations can learn from business and what businesses can do for charities Every single...
How CHAS thinks like a business to deliver compassionate care
Imagine your business had a-once-in-a-generation chance to bring a profound change for the good to hundreds of some of Scotland’s most vulnerable families. But to deliver it your organisation must...
The Five Minute Interview
The Five Minute Interview: Founders of Unorthodox Roasters, Neil Buchan and Chris Bode
Hello, Neil and Chris, thank you for inviting me in for a coffee here in Kinross. Really great you’ve come to visit Unorthodox Coffee roasting HQ. Can you tell us...
‘I often say you’re only as good as your last match, or business wise, the last experience of the guests you’ve had to stay’.
THE FIVE-MINUTE INTERVIEW WITH EILIDH SMITH, CAPTAIN OF GB MASTERS TENNIS TEAM, AND OWNER OF MORTON OF PITMILLY, RURAL HOLIDAY RESORT IN FIFE. Hello, Eilidh. Thank you for inviting me...
I started on the makeup counter, and now I’m back on the shop floor with my own brand. It’s the stuff of dreams
THE FIVE-MINUTE INTERVIEW WITH JAMIE GENEVIEVE, FOUNDER OF VIEVE AND EXPERT MAKEUP ARTIST Hello, Jamie. Nice to meet you. Are you expecting a busy festive spell? Lovely to meet you...
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