Virgin Money store closures latest in long line of banks and lenders shutting branches September 30, 2021 Virgin Money’s latest tranche of branch closures, announced this morning, comes after swathes have been shut across the banking sector in recent months. The move to axe nearly a fifth of Virgin Money’s branch network – 31 stores with 112 jobs at risk – comes as rival HSBC also calls time on the last of [...]
Staycations could inject over £9bn into economy September 30, 2021 A continued demand for staycations could see more than £9bn injected into the UK’s tourism economy. Barclays estimated that, should a preference for UK holidays continue at the same rate in 2022, it would add up to £9.2bn to the domestic tourism market. While many Brits will be eager to swap Cornwall for Portugal next [...]
Barclays targets $3.8bn Gap-branded US credit card portfolio August 27, 2021 Barclays’ US division will buy a $3.8bn credit card portfolio in a co-branding deal with retailer Gap, in a bid to up its market share in the US. Four months after initially reaching an agreement with the clothing giant to partner and create co-branded credit cards for Gap customers, the bank has announced it will [...]
London’s newly-listed LendInvest scores £150m partnership with Barclays and HSBC August 16, 2021 Property finance asset manager LendInvest has announced a £150m lending collaboration with two of Britain’s biggest banks, just weeks after its £255m IPO on London’s AIM index. The new tie-up is geared towards financing UK property entrepreneurs and will see the British banks provide funding for short-term mortgages through LendInvest’s digital platform. It’s the first [...]
Barclays UK assets hit £219bn as easing lockdown sees fewer loan costs July 28, 2021 Barclays UK assets have hit £219bn in the past six months as lockdown measures have eased, allowing for fewer loan costs. The bank’s UK division pulled in a total income of £3.2bn, which was up one per cent in comparison to last year but was partially offset by its operating expenses of some £2.1bn. Shares [...]
Barclays appoints Ingrid Hengster as Germany head July 22, 2021 Barclays announced the appointment of Ingrid Hengster as country chief executive for Germany and global chairman of investment banking. Hengster joins from KfW, the German state-owned investment and development bank, where she held the role of executive board member since 2014. “The almost eight years at KfW were very rewarding because I had the opportunity [...]
City Moves: Who’s switching jobs in the Square Mile this week? July 21, 2021 City A.M.’s Millie Turner provides a roundup of the most important hires and job moves across the City, every Wednesday afternoon. Email citymoves@cityam.com to be featured. Ex-UBS and Canary Wharf Group chiefs join construction-tech firm British construction technology company Modulous has bolstered its London workforce with former Canary Wharf and UBS leads this week. Former director of the Canary Wharf Group Chris [...]
Barclays names new investment bank heads July 20, 2021 Barclays has promoted JF Astier and John Miller to lead its investment banking business, as part of a new management team to oversee the business that mainly advises on big corporate deals such as mergers and stock market listings. The bank said the team, which will also include the heads of divisions such as human resources, [...]
Barclays hires JPMorgan veteran Peter Ward to head global e-trading team July 13, 2021 Peter Ward, a JPMorgan veteran, has been hired by Barclays to become head of digital strategy and global electronic trading from September. He will be based in New York City. Ward will report directly to the bank’s co-president, C.S. Venkatakrishnan, who led the global markets business after a major reshuffle at the top, according to [...]
UK banks bolster debt collection teams ahead of first Covid loan repayments July 6, 2021 The UK’s leading banks are bolstering their debt collection teams as the first repayments of emergency Covid loans fall due. Britain’s four largest banks have hired over 750 workers in their debt collection units in an effort to manage a wave of potential defaults. NatWest has taken on 150 extra staff to handle chasing Covid [...]