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. [...]
Exclusive: Richard Caring in talks to buy City icon 1 Lombard Street June 27, 2026 Richard Caring is in advanced talks to buy iconic City restaurant 1 Lombard Street, marking his first foray back into the restaurant business since the £1.4bn sale of his empire. A deal for the Lombard St restaurant, located in a stunning former banking hall, is understood to be in the final stages of negotiations following [...]
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 [...]
Motor finance revs up City watchdog’s PR spend June 22, 2026 The motor finance scandal has helped rev up the financial watchdog’s spend on public relations agencies as it fought to warn consumers of the risks of using claims management firms. The car mis-selling saga – where City banks have been put on the hook for billions in compensation over the use of ‘secret’ car deals [...]
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 [...]
Kemi Badenoch can still woo the City June 17, 2026 Just under a year ago I sat down with Kemi Badenoch to talk through her plans to win over the City. I left the interview with little to report back. “We are looking at everything,” Badenoch told me at the time. “Our policy renewal programme is trying to get us to a place where we [...]