City watchdog suspends parts of £9bn motor finance scheme after industry backlash July 2, 2026 The UK’s financial watchdog has suspended parts of its under-fire £9bn motor finance redress scheme amid fierce backlash from industry and consumer groups. In a statement on Thursday, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said the suspension will require firms to continue preparations for its scheme but avoid work that “may need to be repeated” if [...]
Halifax ends 173-year high street run as Lloyds ditches branding July 1, 2026 Lloyds Banking Group is set to ditch its Halifax brand in a move that will end the retail bank’s 173-year run on the high street. The FTSE 100 titan – whose subsidiaries also include Bank of Scotland and Scottish Widows – said on Wednesday it would rebrand Halifax under the central moniker of Lloyds. Lloyds [...]
Natwest hit with £250m lawsuit tied to Thurrock Council scandal July 1, 2026 Natwest could be on the hook for more than a quarter of a billion pounds for allegedly aiding a businessman in secretly transferring funds from his investment firm. The FTSE 100 giant’s subsidiary – the Royal Bank of Scotland – has been engulfed in the collapse of Rockfire Group, which was triggered by a fraud [...]
UK banks’ digital ID bid is a game of optics – and the odds are not in their favour July 1, 2026 A digital ID row has dominated headlines in the last year, and banks are set to join the row. In this week’s column, Samuel Norman takes a look at what they might be in for. Britain’s banks have voluntarily thrown themselves into one of the most toxic culture wars of the decade. Few subjects evoke [...]
Lloyds accused of debanking left-wing media outlet The Canary June 30, 2026 Lloyds Banking Group has been accused of debanking the left-wing news website The Canary in a move that has left the media outlet with “barely any funds”. The bank was slammed by the media firm on Tuesday for allegedly “withholding a substantial amount of our money” and debanking them after nearly a decade of use. [...]
UK banks fear a ‘disaster’ with Ed Miliband as Chancellor June 24, 2026 City banks are fretting over the prospect of Ed Miliband as Chancellor as Andy Burnham mulls who he will give the keys to Number 11. The banking industry is bracing for a shake-up at the Treasury and fears it could be hit with a fresh raft of taxes under a new Chancellor while key deregulatory [...]
Badenoch sets sights on battle with the Bank June 24, 2026 The City is in the mood for a regulatory bonfire and Kemi Badenoch hopes to be the one to light the flame. In this week’s column, Samuel Norman looks at the roadblocks she may face on her pursuit. “Don’t forget about Andrew Bailey.” That was the parting shot I got from a former Bank of [...]
Kemi Badenoch pledges to wield the axe on post-financial crisis banking regulation June 18, 2026 Kemi Badenoch will today step up her efforts to woo the City as she promises to wield the axe on post-financial crisis banking regulation if she manages to clinch the keys to Number 10. “London is having its lunch eaten” by overregulation, the Tory leader will proclaim as she proposes a shakeup of the financial regime that she hopes [...]
HSBC targets $100m in savings with Google Cloud AI tie-up June 17, 2026 Europe’s biggest lender HSBC has sealed a a tech tie-up with Google where it aims to use AI to scout priority projects that could bank the firm $100m in “efficiency gains”. The FTSE 100 giant is planning to roll out Google Cloud across its operations in a deal that the bank says will allow 200 [...]
Barclays pays £180m for loss-making UK fintech Gohenry June 12, 2026 Barclays has snapped up the UK arm of money management app Gohenry in a bid to “turbocharge” its ambitions for youth banking and the mass affluent market. The blue-chip lender revealed on Friday it had bought the fintech firm from its parent company, Acorns, for an undisclosed sum in a deal that is expected to [...]