Investec expects strong UK performance to drive earnings growth – but flags credit losses September 22, 2023 Banking and wealth management group Investec expects its UK business to ensure earnings growth but warned that credit losses will be towards the higher end of expectations. In a trading update for the first half of the year, the bank forecasts its headline earnings per share to be between six per cent and 12 per [...]
More than 9.6m current accounts switched since service launched a decade ago September 16, 2023 A service which enables current account holders to ditch and switch to a new provider quickly and smoothly is celebrating its 10th birthday. More than 9.6m switches have been counted since the Current Account Switch Service (Cass) launched on September 16, 2013. The free-to-use service can be used by people, small businesses and small charities [...]
Tipping point? City grandees say Square Mile could be set for Big Bang 2.0 September 12, 2023 The City of London is at an "inflection point," with nearly two thirds of financial services leaders warning that the City's star will wane without intervention.
Planned rule changes for SME lending a ‘dramatic backward step’, challenger banks warn September 11, 2023 Richard Davies, chief executive of SME-focused challenger bank Allica, told City A.M. that the changes would be a "dramatic backward step".
SVB collapse and rising rates help fintech Clearbank double deposits in six months September 6, 2023 Clearbank has doubled its deposit base in six months as it benefited from rising interest rates and attracted new clients in the wake of Silicon Valley Bank's (SVB) collapse.
Global watchdog warns over ‘very high leverage’ in hedge funds September 6, 2023 Leverage is now very high in parts of the $7 trillion hedge fund sector, G20 risk watchdog Financial Stability Board (FSB) warned on Wednesday, while noting that significant data gaps make it hard to get a full picture of vulnerabilities among "non-banks".
Natwest to appoint Rick Haythornthwaite as new chair and he’ll take charge next April September 6, 2023 Natwest is preparing to appoint Rick Haythornwaite as successor to chair Howard Davies.
Fraud ‘increasing national security threat’ thanks to AI, Lord Mayor warns September 5, 2023 Fraud is increasingly a threat to “national security” as advances in artificial intelligence serve to boost the chances of scammers, the Lord Mayor has warned. Nicholas Lyons, Lord mayor of the City of London, told the International Symposium on Economic Crime in Cambridge that addressing economic crime “must be seen as a foundation for a [...]
Exclusive: Bank of London crowned fastest-growing challenger amassing £300m since getting licence August 31, 2023 The Bank of London has amassed £300m in deposits within six months of taking client money, making it comfortably the UK’s fastest growing SME-focused challenger. Chief executive Anthony Watson said that the bank has been “inundated with demand” since exiting its regulatory restrictions in February this year. Businesses in Britain have been “under-served by both [...]
High street banks pull back from SME lending despite increasing demand August 30, 2023 Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are finding it increasingly difficult to access funding from high street banks, new data out today shows. According to data from fintech firm iwoca, 84 per cent of finance brokers said high street banks were increasingly reluctant to lend to SMEs. This was seven percentage points more than the quarter [...]