Don’t let corporate governance turn into a box-ticking exercise January 16, 2020 Last week, some of the UK’s biggest businesses received a rap on the knuckles, as the Financial Reporting Council (FRC) published its annual review of how well companies lived up to the Corporate Governance Code. Some FTSE firms, the accounting and governance regulator argued, were simply “paying lip service to the spirit of the Code”, [...]
Fintech can be the silver bullet to banking the UK’s unbanked January 15, 2020 Can new technology help the 1.23m people in the UK who don’t have a bank account? And could it improve the lives of the 10–12m who still struggle to access affordable loans? New research suggests that the answer to both those questions is yes. It is all thanks to London’s booming fintech sector — one [...]
A tip for Dominic Cummings: Don’t hire anyone who fails to grasp the power of incentives January 15, 2020 The job advert issued by Dominic Cummings for people to work in government has attracted a wide range of comments. One particular focus has been on the sorts of skills he is looking for. Computer science, forecasting, artificial intelligence, causality theory — all these topics excite his interest. Cummings advocates a small selection of scientific [...]
Why Larry Fink is right to hail the great reallocation January 15, 2020 When you manage over $7 trillion your investment decisions don’t just move markets, they shape them. Blackrock’s Larry Fink understands this and his annual letter to CEOs tends to set out his big-picture thoughts on what companies and boards ought to be thinking about – and what they ought to be doing. His 2018 letter [...]
Time to cull the ministers who sit around the cabinet table January 15, 2020 Walter Bagehot, one of the fathers of our modern constitutional structure, believed that the cabinet was the “efficient secret” of the British state. But what if the institution is now too large to run the country efficiently? I agree with the assessment from chief Number 10 aide Dominic Cummings that the cabinet as it stands [...]
DEBATE: Is a new ‘Trump deal’ the answer to the Iran nuclear problem? January 15, 2020 Is a new “Trump deal” the answer to the Iran nuclear problem? YES, says Ben Kelly, a commentator for Reaction. Does anyone genuinely believe that Donald Trump’s objection to the Iran nuclear deal was based on detailed analysis of its contents? No. Trump rejected it as part of his obsession with dismantling Barack Obama’s legacy. [...]
Why Open Banking is the next finance revolution January 15, 2020 The saying that the “customer is king” has been an accepted truism for a long time. But it is only recently that this has really been the case, with technology largely driving a shift of power away from traditional providers to the consumer. Think of how music streaming services like Spotify completely changed how we [...]
To micromanage or not to micromanage, that is the question January 15, 2020 If you’re a manager, knowing when to bite your tongue and say nothing can be tough, especially when you’re watching someone make a mistake that you know how to avoid. Jump in too often, and you become a micromanager. Let people fail excessively, and they become disheartened and inactive. How do you strike the right [...]
RCEP or CPTPP: Will Asia finally agree a trade deal? January 14, 2020 It is occasionally worth revisiting where Asia is with its expansive and highly complex trade negotiations, given that one can often get lost in the acronyms and fanfare of the latest set of talks. The first major attempt, an agreement with 11 signatories called the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) or TPP11 — [...]
Boardroom shakeup at Buckingham Palace January 14, 2020 A shock decision that caught the establishment by surprise has led to rancour and division. Now, after hectic negotiations during which the media lapped up spin from each side, it looks as if a Canada-style deal is on the cards — following a pragmatic transition period. But this ain’t Brexit folks, it’s the modern monarchy [...]