Founder & Publisher
Sam Allcock
Digital media entrepreneur and founder of Leeds Business News
Verified contributor United Kingdom
Sam Allcock is a digital media and public relations entrepreneur and the founder and publisher of Leeds Business News. He has built and runs a portfolio of independent online news and media brands, and oversees the title’s coverage of the companies, deals, people and ideas shaping business in Leeds: from finance and professional services to commercial property, technology, startups, hospitality and people moves.
Analysis by Sam Allcock
- Finance
Northern Square Mile board meets as £6.5m Leeds Financial Innovation Exchange is named
Lloyds Banking Group, Deloitte, Yorkshire Building Society, FinTech North and the University of Leeds sit on the new industry-led board, which held its first meeting on 19 October 2026.
- Property
FCA to move Leeds office to 2 Wellington Place in 2028
The regulator has agreed to take 36,097 sq ft across the top two floors of the building, which is being refurbished, with more than 350 staff relocating.
- People
Brabners hires strategic land specialist David Cole as Leeds-based partner
The law firm says Cole is the latest in a run of senior real estate and disputes appointments to its Leeds office.
- Tech
University of Leeds ranked second in money.co.uk AI-readiness study
The study of 146 UK universities scored AI-related courses, graduate employment and spinout activity, and placed Leeds behind only Imperial College London.
- Companies
PureGym agrees £235m deal for Swiss gym chain NonStop Gym
The Leeds-headquartered operator says the purchase will make it the largest low-cost gym operator in Switzerland, with completion expected on 2 November 2026.
- Tech
Sharp opens UK headquarters at South Central in Leeds
The technology company's 10,200 sq ft office is home to nearly 100 of its more than 700 UK staff and doubles as a showroom for its workplace technology.
- Hospitality
Amity Brew Co doubles Farsley taproom covers after second Finance Yorkshire investment
A second £150,000 from Finance Yorkshire paid for the refurbishment of the Leeds taproom and the launch of La Grassa, an all-day Italian-American kitchen.