‘It’s a pivotal time’ November 16, 2021 | Sponsored Interview with Simon Kenyon, Group Ambassador for London, Lloyds Banking Group Taking the pulse of London’s financial health is not easy: for every business that’s thriving, or at least showing ‘bouncebackability’ from the pandemic, there are others struggling to keep the wolf from the door. But the economic pulse is beating a little faster inside the [...]
JP Morgan: Hong Kong Covid measures create tough hiring climate, says Dimon November 15, 2021 Hong Kong’s strict Covid-19 pandemic restrictions have reportedly created a tough hiring environment for JP Morgan, boss Jamie Dimon said. The city state has some of the world’s most stringent emergency pandemic measures, with inbound travellers having to quarantine in hotels for as long as three weeks form some countries. Dimon said earlier today that [...]
Starling Bank CEO: Barclays ‘firmly in our sights’ as we’ll be bigger within five years November 15, 2021 Barclays is firmly on the radar of Starling Bank’s senior management, as the company said it is working to overtake the Canary Wharf-based banking giant in the business banking market within the next five years. The bold predictions come as the digital lending disruptor is getting ready for a stock market float. Starling’s founder and [...]
Bank of England defends fossil fuel funding to Extinction Rebellion November 14, 2021 The Bank of England (BoE) reportedly tried to appease Extinction Rebellion (XR) protests earlier this year, as the climate activist group targeted City fossil fuel financing. In emails with XR members, the central bank urged that government instead has the “primary levers for driving the economy-wide transition to net-zero emissions”, The Telegraph first reported. In [...]
Staley and Epstein exchanged 1,200 emails that included mysterious phrases November 12, 2021 Former Barclays chief Jes Staley who left the bank to fight the findings of a probe into whether he lied about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein exchanged 1,200 emails with the convicted sex offender. The content of the emails included seemingly codified phrases such as “snow white” which investigators were unable to decipher. The news [...]
A bank to bridge the gap November 12, 2021 | Sponsored Eleven months after the announcement of a new national infrastructure bank it made its first investment. Can this new institution follow the success of its predecessor the Green Investment Bank and have a real impact on a green future. Our Green Finance Forum panel discusses. Level up On October 25th this year, the UK National [...]
Credit management veteran reflects on the pandemic: ‘Have you had a good crisis?’ November 11, 2021 Colin Storrar, the CEO of Lowell, one of the UK’s largest credit management companies, returns my question with a question, or rather a series of questions, when asked about his priorities since the first national lockdown was announced. “How have you treated your people this crisis? Have you thought about their work environment? Have you [...]
Adapt or die: What can retail, health and other industries learn from banks? Turns out, a lot November 10, 2021 What can retail, health and other industries learn from banks? Turns out, a lot. A third of Brits rate their digital experiences in financial services a 9 or 10 out of 10 compared to other industries. In fact, whether it is making payments, getting a loan or even opening a new account, by far most [...]
Brexit in the City: New powers for watchdogs FCA and PRA as UK moves away from EU rules November 10, 2021 The City’s main regulators, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), will be given new powers to set rules as the UK moves away from the EU framework after Brexit, according to Government proposals. Regulators will be required to consider how the UK’s financial sector can grow and compete internationally when setting [...]
Record 267 bank branches were closed across UK within just three months November 10, 2021 Data from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) shows that 267 bank and building society branches were closed permanently between April and June of this year, leaving the overall network 4.55 per cent smaller at 5,599. The closures meant less than two-thirds of the UK population (60.1 per cent) are now within 2km of a bank [...]