Starmer drama: Traders bet against UK as short-selling on pound and banks surges Economics Traders are betting against the UK as the political storm in Westminster continues to send jitters through asset markets. The pound has tumbled to a two-week low against the dollar, clinging onto the $1.35 mark on Thursday morning. Meanwhile, figures from IG revealed that short-positioning on the pound-dollar, a bet that the price will further [...]
Bank of England’s Breeden warns on rivals overtaking UK on innovation Fintech The Bank of England’s lead for fintech policy and digital currency has laid out a sweeping vision for the UK’s next generation of payments infrastructure amid a rallying cry for the UK to not lag behind its peers. Sarah Breeden, a rate-setter at the central bank and the deputy governor for financial stability, said the [...]
Pound falls to 2023 low against Euro as Budget jitters spike Economics The Pound suffered a sharp drop on Wednesday as investors braced for an economic hit in Rachel Reeves’ forthcoming Budget. Sterling’s downturn came as the UK’s fiscal watchdog looks set to hand a hefty downgrade to the country’s productivity growth. On Wednesday morning, the pound fell 0.4 per cent against the Euro to 1.13 – [...]
Digital pound could make Treasury billions from seigniorage revenue April 29, 2024 "The government looks set to receive a significant windfall from the introduction of a digital pound in the coming years, which doesn’t seem to have yet factored into debates over ‘fiscal headroom’," Simon Youel, author of the research said.