BTG

The Trump administration has replaced the reciprocal tariffs regime that was struck down by the Supreme Court with a non-discriminatory tariff tool, shifting tariff risk to a more uncertain carve-out-driven framework. In this new regime, the UK’s prior relative advantage for non-exempt goods is no longer assured and outcomes depend on sector carve-outs, product mix and enforcement.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is widely positioned as a growth and innovation accelerator. But for most SMEs, AI is better framed as a productivity driver rather than a strategy. 

BTG has supported Covestus on the acquisition of the Dentyl and UltraDex brands from Venture Life Group. 

Covestus operates a buy-and-build strategy in the consumer healthcare space, focusing on brands with strong clinical credentials and clear opportunities to improve brand recognition, product distribution or to pursue new product development opportunities. Its existing portfolio includes Probio7, a leading gut health supplement brand, and Sweatguard, a clinically proven solution for hyperhidrosis. 

UK construction activity spent the entire year in contraction territory in 2025, with conditions deteriorating sharply in November, when firms recorded the fastest decline in new orders in five and a half years. The slump was attributed to Budget-related uncertainty and deferred investment, which subdued demand, accentuated fragile client confidence and delayed spending decisions, contributing to weak sales pipelines into the year end.

Reforms to the UK’s national living wage (NLW) are expected to compound the financial and operational pressures already facing UK care homes when announced in the autumn budget. The sector is stretched by soaring costs, a fragile funding model, and intensifying regulatory demands.

Wiltshire based furniture manufacturer Summit 1977 has been bought out of administration, rescuing 53 jobs at the company and securing its future after almost 50 years of trading.

Thames Water’s deepening crisis has become a litmus test for how the UK regulates, finances, and governs its most essential infrastructure. Over the past three decades, private capital has transformed low-risk utilities into overleveraged financial assets – prioritising short-term returns over long-term investment, environmental sustainability, service quality and affordability.

In recent weeks, the UK has concluded three bilateral trade agreements: a symbolic reset with the EU, a narrow tariff reprieve with the US, and a long-negotiated free trade deal with India. Each varies in scope, timing, and economic consequences.

The advance of artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare is underway. These rapid technological developments offer significant productivity benefits, but also introduce operational, financial, ethical and legal risks that must be understood before healthcare operators integrate AI across their services and systems.

Independent schools across the UK are under growing financial strain. Spiralling costs, revenue pressures, and unsupportive policy changes are all accelerating a trend of school closures. The burdens are structural: operating costs are rising, pupil intakes are falling, revenues are constrained, and governance frameworks are often ill-equipped to navigate rapid financial change.

After much consultation with industry professionals and other stakeholders, in late 2024 the Home Office released detailed guidance relating to the new corporate criminal offence of failure to prevent fraud (“FTPF”), which forms part of the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 ("ECCTA").

UK SMEs face a difficult and volatile year ahead. Companies must navigate a weakening macroeconomic environment, fragile fiscal policy, and heightened uncertainty over global trade. Although US President Donald Trump announced a 90-day pause on most tariffs

Donald Trump’s “Liberation Day” – the culmination of his efforts to restructure the US economy and global trade – sparked a sharp global market sell-off that engulfed global equity markets and Bitcoin, as bonds rallied, in a fast-escalating trade war crisis.