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Barclays in legal battle with MFS administrators over part of £160m holding. Senior City Reporter The administrators of collapsed mortgage lender MFS are taking legal action against Barclays after the bank allegedly refused to hand back millions of pounds sat in its accounts. Alix Partners, which was appointed as joint administrators for Market Financial Solutions in February, filed a High Court claim against Barclays on 31 July to claw back funds that belonged to the failed lender. The claimant is alleging that Barclays has not returned the cash owed to the administrators of MFS Ltd, which serves as the lender's central operating entity, distinct from its network of separate funding silos. City AM understands Barclays was holding in excess of £160m belonging to the operating unit and silos at the time of the administration. The collapse of MFS sent shockwaves through the financial system after a £1.3bn shortfall hit major global banks and private credit funds. The firm was accused of "double pledging", where it used the same property assets as collateral for multiple loans from different institutions at the same time. News updates. Stay ahead with our three daily briefings delivering all the key market moves, top business and political stories, and incisive analysis straight to your inbox. Barclays cut back risky lending after MFS hit. Alix Partners is now seeking to claw back a fraction of the £160m as part of the legal battle. Barclays confirmed it will be defending the claim but declined to comment further. One source close to Alix Partners said there was "nothing normal" about the frozen cash and warned it could start a precedent of "one by one people going to the courts". Barclays freed up £21m of cash to Grant Thornton following a claim in April. The professional services firm is a court-appointed administrator for Trident Funding, a funding silo tied to MFS. The blue-chip bank held a dual role in the MFS ecosystem, where it acted as both a lender and provided primary transactional bank activities. It began freezing MFS accounts in November 2025 after spotting irregularities. Barclays total exposure to MFS is estimated to be around £500m, making it the single largest creditor to the group. The bank took a hit of £228m from the collapse, which pushed its total credit impairment charges to £823m for the first three months of the year. This was up from £634m in the same period last year. The group's chief executive CS Venkatakrishnan, known as Venkat, said the bank was "constraining lending to certain structured finance counterparties" as a result of the hit. It also followed a £110m loss over the collapse of US sub-prime auto lender Tricolor.

AlixPartners hires Tamara Olsen as global head of innovation. 08 July 2026 Consulting.us AlixPartners, a New York-headquartered management consulting firm, has hired Tamara Olsen as its first global head of innovation. Based in Boston, Olsen will be responsible for creating and scaling firmwide capabilities in product development and management, third-party partnerships, and knowledge management. She will also work with functional leaders to deliver a comprehensive innovation strategy that enhances products and services delivered to clients and optimizes data usage and methodology. Olsen joins AlixPartners' global executive leadership team and will report to co-CEOs David Garfield and Rob Hornby. "The consulting industry itself is being reshaped by rapid technological and organizational change, and AlixPartners has a unique position and opportunity in this transformation. Tamara is an exceptional leader and deeply respected practitioner who understands not just how to navigate this rapidly changing environment, but how to help organizations thrive within it," Garfield said. Olsen previously spent 22 years with Bain & Company, most recently spending seven years as EVP of practice knowledge and delivery. In the role, Olsen led three major global service lines and architected the consultancy's GenAI knowledge management strategy. Before that, she was a partner focusing on turnaround, restructuring, and performance improvement engagements in the healthcare and industrial sectors. Olsen has an MBA from Stanford University and a bachelor's degree in government from Harvard University. "I am excited to join AlixPartners at this pivotal moment in the consulting industry," said Olsen. "I look forward to working with the exceptional teams across AlixPartners to build an innovation engine that enhances our client offerings and enables our people to do their best work." AlixPartners has more than 3,000 professionals across 25+ global offices. The firm provides consulting in turnaround and restructuring, performance improvement, risk and disputes, economics, transactions, technology, and leadership.

China's automotive globalization: transitioning from trade export to comprehensive ecosystem development. Wesley Chen From Gasgoo | June 9, 2026 21:37 BJT Against the backdrop of the global automotive industry entering a stock game, regional divergence in electrification, and geopolitical reshaping of supply chains, China's automotive globalization has moved beyond the early-stage model of simple vehicle exports. It is now undergoing a deep transformation from product-trade-based globalization to a comprehensive ecosystem globalization that integrates manufacturing, supply chains, and services. Gasgoo Automotive Research Institute, in collaboration with AlixPartners, leverages the latest globalization data and corporate practices to decode the key characteristics and growth logic of this new phase of China's automotive globalization from four dimensions: industry overview, market landscape, core trends, and representative manufacturers. To access the full report (72-page PDF), click the card below to register for downloading The core content of the report is as follows: Industry Overview The global automotive market has entered a phase of low-speed steady growth, with two core shifts in the industrial landscape: First, the electrification process has shifted from global synchronization to regional differentiation, with China, Europe, Southeast Asia, and North America progressing at distinct paces. Second, the industrial paradigm has shifted from efficiency-driven globalization to security- and sovereignty-driven regional closed loops, where local content, data compliance, and equity governance have become new entry barriers. China's automotive globalization is simultaneously entering a stage of structural upgrading, marked by three key transformations: At the product level, the shift is from exporting single models to adapting diverse powertrain matrices. In the supply chain, the focus has moved from OEMs operating alone to collaborative globalization of core components. In business models, the transition is from vehicle sales to integrated ecosystem development encompassing channels, finance, after-sales, and charging infrastructure. Trade barriers, geopolitical fluctuations, policy volatility, and insufficient localization adaptation have emerged as core challenges that must be overcome in this new phase. Market Landscape The scale of China's passenger vehicle exports continues to rise, with ongoing optimization in three structural aspects: export regions, powertrain types, and corporate entities. At the regional level, the Middle East became China's largest passenger vehicle export market in 2025, with year-on-year growth of approximately 30%. The European market showed a significant recovery, with growth of about 40%, rising to the second position. Central and South America, as well as Southeast Asia, maintained steady growth, with Southeast Asia entering a period of explosive electrification growth. In terms of powertrain structure, globalization has shifted from a single breakthrough in pure electric vehicles (BEVs) to a diversified pattern where internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles provide a foundation, plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) and hybrids lead growth, and BEVs are selectively deployed. ICE vehicles still dominate in markets with weak infrastructure, such as the Middle East, Africa, and Latin America. PHEVs/hybrids are rapidly gaining traction in regions with underdeveloped charging infrastructure and high fuel prices, such as Latin America and Europe. BEVs are strategically deployed in regions with policy support and clear high-end demand. Regarding corporate entities, leading state-owned and private automakers have become the absolute main force. Independent brands like Chery, BYD, SAIC, and Geely dominate the top export rankings, while the share of foreign joint venture brands in exports continues to shrink. Development Trends In the short term, China's passenger vehicle exports are expected to maintain high growth momentum, with export volume projected to exceed 7 million units in 2026. Localized production and expansion into new markets will be the core growth drivers. From a medium- to long-term perspective, China's automotive globalization exhibits four clear trends: First, the brand landscape will continue to consolidate, with leading independent brands capturing global incremental demand. Second, multiple powertrain routes will coexist, with the strategic importance of PHEVs and REEVs continuing to rise. Third, the focus will shift from vehicle exports to collaborative globalization of the entire industry chain, with simultaneous deployment of components, software, and services. Fourth, Sino-foreign industrial cooperation will evolve from channel partnerships to deep integration in capital, technology, manufacturing, and ecosystems. In the long term, China's automotive industry aims to transition from leveraging cost advantages and reconstructing localized strengths to ultimately exporting global industrial paradigms, achieving a shift from being a participant to a standard-setter. To access the full report (72-page PDF), click the card below to register for downloading Gasgoo not only offers timely news and profound insight about China auto industry, but also help with business connection and expansion for suppliers and purchasers via multiple channels and methods. Buyer service: [email protected] Seller Service: [email protected]