The advisory firm co-founded by Peter Mandelson has collapsed into administration, in the fallout from the scandal surrounding his historical links to paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein.

Global Counsel said it had stopped trading and that the majority of its roughly 80 UK staff have been made redundant.

Administrators at Interpath have been appointed for the London-based lobbying business, which said it suffered a significant financial impact from a swathe of customers cutting ties with the firm.

This left directors with no choice but to bring in administrators, it said, despite the firm recently saying that Lord Mandelson no longer had any role or influence over it.

It is reported that Barclays, Tesco and Klarna were among those to recently end contracts, while Vodafone put its one under review, after the so-called Epstein files were released by US authorities.

Will Wright, UK chief executive of Interpath and joint administrator, said: “While Global Counsel had grown over the past 15 years to become one of the UK’s leading public affairs consultancies, the rapid and sudden loss of clients over recent weeks has had a monumental impact on the business.”

Steve Absolom, managing director at Interpath and joint administrator, said: “Our immediate focus is on supporting the talented and loyal UK team of Global Counsel employees who, having collectively built a market-leading business, now sadly find themselves having to be made redundant.”

Administrators said they were considering their options for the business and reviewing its assets.

Earlier this month, Global Counsel said it had cut ties with Lord Mandelson and announced the departure of its boss Benjamin Wegg-Prosser.

It stressed that Lord Mandelson no longer had any shareholding, role or association with the company – and no influence over the firm.

Nevertheless, the business continued to come under pressure from its association to the former politician and US ambassador and the ongoing scrutiny.

Lord Mandelson co-founded the firm with Mr Wegg-Prosser in 2010 after Labour lost the general election.

He stepped down from its board about two years ago.

Mr Wegg-Prosser was previously a political adviser and director of strategic communications under former prime minister Tony Blair, before going on to work as a director at a Russian media firm.

Global Counsel has worked with a roster of clients including Palantir, GSK, Vodafone, OpenAI, TikTok and the English Premier League.

The latest tranche of documents in the Epstein files appear to show Lord Mandelson passing potentially market-sensitive information to the financier in 2009, while he was business secretary in Gordon Brown’s government.

His London and Wiltshire homes have been searched by officers as part of the Metropolitan Police’s probe into alleged misconduct in public office.

Retail sales surged last month in the biggest rise for more than a year and a half as online retailers experienced “unprecedented” demand for jewellery and strong orders of sports supplements amid the New Year health-kick.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the total volume of retail sales, which measures the quantity bought, rose by 1.8% in January, up from growth of 0.4% in December and the largest increase since May 2024.

The rise was far better than expected, with most experts having forecast only a slight 0.2% increase for last month.

The ONS said online jewellers reported that demand “hit unprecedented levels” last month, with demand booming in recent months as gold prices jumped to record levels above 5,000 US dollars an ounce (£3,718).

Gold and silver have been boosted as investors target “safe haven” assets amid geopolitical uncertainty.

January sales were also helped by New Year resolutions sparking robust demand for sports supplements online, while the ONS added it was a good month for auctions of artwork and antiques.

In the three months to January, sales rose 0.1%, with the ONS revising down its estimate for November to a fall of 0.4% from the 0.1% drop previously recorded.

Experts said the latest data showed consumer confidence had rebounded following autumn budget uncertainty that weighed on retail sales in November.

Online sales rose by 3.4% last month and by 19.6% year-on-year, while non-food shops also fared well with sales up 2.2% against a 1.2% increase for food shops.

Thomas Pugh, chief economist at RSM UK, said the sales rebound last month “suggests that consumers are opening their wallets again as budget uncertainty recedes”.

He added there were “good reasons to be hopeful for retail sales over the rest of the year” as interest rates are expected to come down further, possibly as soon as next month.

Mr Pugh said: “Confidence should continue to improve this year as inflation and interest rates come down and the housing market picks up.

“The big risk is a disruptive (Government) leadership contest which resurrects the spectre of tax rises and dampens confidence again.”

The retail sales performance will give hope of better conditions for retailers after a tough start to the year, with a raft of firms collapsing into administration, such as accessories retailer Claire’s, The Original Factory Shop, Quiz and footwear brand Russell and Bromley.

Soaring costs and subdued consumer spending have taken their toll on the high street.

Julie Palmer, managing partner at BTG, formerly called Begbies Traynor, said: “Whilst the increase at the start of the year is very promising, and perhaps suggests that consumers held off until they fully understood how the budget was going to affect their finances, retailers will want to see consistency and certainty to the landscape going forward.

“Undoubtedly, retailers have had a tough past 12 months and after this bounceback all eyes will be on February’s sales figures to see whether this growth is sustained or temporary.”

Foreign portfolio investors once again turned towards Dalal Street to shop for Indian equities, spending in Rs 33,487 crore across 15 sectors, in the first half of February. The bulk of the inflows went into capital goods, financial services and oil & gas stocks, marking the strongest fortnightly buying seen since the second half of April 2025. Capital goods stocks attracted the highest inflows, drawing Rs 8,032 crore between February 1 and 15, compared with Rs 2,761 crore in January. The government’s Rs 4,470 crore stake sale in BHEL partly supported the sector’s momentum. “The capital goods sector has underperformed the market, and there was nothing negative in the budget on the sector which could have prompted global investors to reallocate funds,” said Siddarth Bhamre, head of Research, Asit C Mehta Intermediates told ET. According to Rajesh Singhla, CEO & fund manager at Alpha AIF, the US-India trade deal framework announced in the first week of February also lifted sentiment in segments such as capital goods, textiles, gems and jewellery, helping draw foreign money. Financial services witnessed a turnaround, receiving Rs 6,175 crore in the first fortnight of February after facing outflows of Rs 8,592 crore in January. Singhla said strong third-quarter earnings from banks and financial companies may have supported investor interest, although he noted that valuations in the sector remain unappealing. Foreign investors also bought Rs 4,678 crore worth of oil & gas shares during the period.Why is IT still failing to attract? Despite the broader buying, overseas investors continued to exit some sectors. They sold Rs 13,812 crore across eight sectors in the first half of February, with information technology bearing the brunt. IT alone accounted for more than Rs 10,000 crore of the outflows. The sector has been under sustained pressure in 2025, with nearly Rs 75,000 crore worth of shares offloaded so far, the highest among all sectors, amid concerns that AI-led disruption could affect the outlook for software services exporters. “Fears of AI making the sector less labour-intensive could spark further selling,” said Bhamre. “Overseas investors have shifted allocation from services to pockets in the real economy in this fortnight.” Market performance reflects the trend. The Nifty IT index has declined nearly 15% so far this year, compared with a 2.6% drop in the benchmark Nifty. Singhla, however, suggested the sell-off may have been excessive. “The foreign selling in IT stocks was due to fears of the earnings trending lower as the threat of disruptions due to AI loomed large, but most of the selling was sentimental, and the sell-off was an overreaction,” he said.