Losses jump more than 50 per cent at digital bank Monzo June 27, 2019 Losses at digital bank Monzo widened to £47.2m last year, its annual report published today shows. Losses increased 54 per cent from £30.5m the year previously. Personnel expenses for the year ended 28 February jumped to £25.6m from £9.2m in 2018. This reflects the company’s expansion, with more than 400 staff spread across its offices [...]
The FCA must stop making excuses and act to avoid another GRG scandal June 27, 2019 It is six years since the damning accusations came to light that the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) had been decimating small businesses for its own benefit. It was in fact a businessman, an adviser at the time to Vince Cable as business secretary in the coalition government, who uncovered and pulled together the dossier [...]
Transferwise expands to the US with digital banking effort June 26, 2019 Fintech stalwart Transferwise has lifted the lid on its expansion to the US, opening up access to its banking arm across the Atlantic. One year on from its launch in Europe, Transferwise’s borderless banking account and debit card will be available to US users from today after a short beta-testing period last month. The firm [...]
UK banks restart no-deal Brexit planning June 26, 2019 UK banks are beginning to restart preparations for a no-deal Brexit, according to auditor EY. British financial institutions had paused their Brexit strategies over the past three months after the UK’s original 29 March departure date was extended until Halloween. Read more: Boris challenges Jeremy Hunt to commit to 31 October Brexit But banks have [...]
Regulator steps up scrutiny of fintech banks June 26, 2019 Applications to become the next Monzo or Revolut are falling under greater scrutiny, as regulators act on concerns about risk management. The Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) only approved four applications for banking licences in the 12 months to the end of February, down from 14 in the previous year. However the number of applications remained [...]
FCA chief says ‘evidence not there’ to take action on RBS GRG unit June 25, 2019 The head of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) Andrew Bailey has defended his organisation’s report into RBS’s disgraced turnaround unit, saying “the evidence is just not there” to support action against the managers involved. Read more: MPs brand watchdog’s RBS GRG report a ‘complete whitewash’ Yet he insisted that the rules on whether or not [...]
Regulators place heightened check on Facebook’s libra cryptocurrency June 25, 2019 Authorities in the UK and worldwide have ramped up calls for increased scrutiny on new digital currencies and financial disruption, in the wake of Facebook attempting to enter the space. G20 regulatory group the Financial Stability Board (FSB) said today the trend set by Facebook’s libra coin will cause regulators to take a deeper look [...]
Monzo smashes past £2bn valuation in fresh round from Silicon fund June 25, 2019 Just six months on from its last capital plug, digital bank Monzo has raised £113m from major US tech investor Y Combinator in a round that values the startup at more than £2bn. Through its Continuity fund, Y Combinator joined the round alongside other investors including Latitude, General Catalyst, Stripe, Passion Capital, Thrive, Goodwater, Accel [...]
Labour to launch inquiry into ‘shadow banking’ that funds anti-environment industries June 24, 2019 Labour is launching an inquiry into “shadow banking” in a bid to crack down on investment that fuels industries contributing to climate change. Shadow chancellor John McDonnell announced the the investigation in a speech to UK Finance on Monday as he talked up Labour’s green credentials. McDonnell praised the actions of the Extinction Rebellion protestors [...]
Lloyds freezes 8,000 offshore bank accounts June 24, 2019 Lloyds Banking Group has frozen about 8,000 bank accounts registered offshore after asking the customers for three years to prove their identities. The banking giant, which has its international business in Jersey, was forced to take action in order to meet regulatory requirements. Read more: Deutsche Bank faces US money laundering investigation The move to [...]