Royal Bank of Scotland plans to increase its market share by half over the next year in an effort to be a key player in the UK mortgage market, The Guardian reported. The government-backed lender is now granting more than one in 10 new loans.

Internet retailers including Ocado, Shop Direct and Boden have criticised their high street counterparts over demands for a special online sales tax, saying it would destroy Britain’s businesses and jobs, The Times said.

British consultant Peter Humphrey, who specialises in fraud investigations in China, has been detained as part of the country’s investigation into GlaxoSmithKline’s £320m alleged bribery scandal, The Telegraph unveiled. He is believed to have been a contractor for the company.

HSBC is trying to convince investors of its strong commitment to its private bank, despite a number of European entities being wound down, trimmed or sold in recent months, according to the Financial Times.

More women are joining the upper ranks of Britain’s biggest companies, according a survey by recruitment group Korn/Ferry Whitehead Mann, which showed almost 47% of first-time appointments in the FTSE 350 were female last year compared to 11% in 2007, The Independent revealed.