Keith Wade: Is the world now heading for recession? March 13, 2020 | City Talk As I returned to the UK last weekend, my taxi driver talked of panic-buying and impending food shortages. Having wondered if I had stepped off at the wrong airport, it subsequently became clear that his thinking was very close to that of the markets. On Monday (9 March), equities sold off and credit spreads widened [...]
Goldman Sachs and UBS expect Bank of England rate cut March 5, 2020 Investment banking giants Goldman Sachs and UBS are both predicting that the Bank of England will cut interest rates in response to the coronavirus outbreak. Goldman analysts expect the BoE will slash rates by 50 basis points (0.5 per cent) at its meeting next month, saying that the epidemic is likely to push the UK [...]
Bank of England expects to internal report on audio feed misuse in April March 3, 2020 The Bank of England expects an internal report into misuse of its audio feeds to go the bank’s directors in April, after it emerged that hedge funds were able to access a market-sensitive feed ahead of its official broadcast. Outgoing governor Mark Carney told the Treasury committee today that he expected the BoE’s court — [...]
Deutsche Bank under pressure from UK regulator over compliance failings March 2, 2020 The British financial regulator has criticised Deutsche Bank for failing to improve its compliance and anti-money laundering controls, and warned this could threaten the lender’s access to the UK post-Brexit. Bank of England regulators have told the German lender they now require monthly updates, as opposed to typical quarterly meetings, according to the Financial Times. [...]
BoE governor Mark Carney urges the City to step up on climate change February 27, 2020 Outgoing Bank of England governor Mark Carney has demanded the City answer “calls to action” on climate change and help speed up the transition to a low-carbon economy. In a speech given in the City this morning, Carney is expected to call on money managers to “ensure that every financial decision takes climate change into [...]
Bank of England chief cashier indicates backing for official digital currency February 23, 2020 The Bank of England’s chief cashier has indicated support for an official digital currency, saying it is “crucial” for central banks to consider entering the market before it becomes dominated by tech giants. Sarah John, who is responsible for issuing banknotes, said it was “really important” for central banks to consider digital currencies “as an [...]
DEBATE: Should the government intervene to stop cash disappearing? February 21, 2020 Should the government intervene to stop cash disappearing, as the Access To Cash panel has urged? YES, says Andrew Martin, chief executive of Retail Financial Consulting. It’s essential that cash remains a staple of British society in order to maintain social inclusion and economic stability. One need only look at Sweden, which is on the [...]
New £20 note enters circulation: Everything you need to know February 20, 2020 The Bank of England’s new polymer £20 note enters circulation for the first time today. The note, which was first unveiled in October, features British painter JMW Turner, will start appearing at ATMs and tills throughout the country today. The BoE said it expects half of ATMS across Britain to be dispensing polymer £20 notes [...]
UK and EU must avoid a ‘punch-up’ over financial services, says incoming BoE governor Bailey February 12, 2020 Britain and the European Union must find a way to settle disagreements over how the UK’s finance industry can do business with the bloc without it descending into a “metaphorical punch-up”, said incoming Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey. Bailey, who is currently head of the Financial Conduct Authority, also said it would be “hard [...]
BoE policymaker calls for stress testing to go beyond banking sector February 5, 2020 A Bank of England (BoE) policymaker has called for bank stress testing to extend beyond the banking sector. Speaking at the European Central Bank’s stress testing conference in Frankfurt, Donald Kohn said that the bank was looking at opening up stress testing to hedge funds and open-ended funds. Stress tests are used by the BoE [...]