Sofas and season tickets: Inside the world of retail finance May 16, 2025 Retailing financing is on the up and as big banks steer away from the market, specialist lenders are cashing in. Fresh research from the finance and leasing association (FLA) showed consumer finance grew by 13 per cent in March 2025, compared to the year prior. The first quarter of 2025 saw a six per cent [...]
Natwest: Shares in FTSE 100 giant smash decade high May 15, 2025 Shares in banking giant Natwest notched a ten-year high on Thursday as the government continued to whittle down its stake in the lender. The FTSE 100 giant’s stock was up nearly one per cent during mid-day trading and touched highs of 498.8p. Natwest shares are up nearly 24 per cent since the beginning of 2025 [...]
How the big four banks are proving private capital can drive social change May 15, 2025 Better Society Capital has unlocked £4bn in social investment over 12 years, proving how public-private collaboration can tackle the UK’s most complex challenges – from housing to healthcare. Here’s why it’s time for more investors to step up, says James Chew In 2011, the UK’s four largest banks – Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds and NatWest – [...]
FTSE 100 banks Lloyds and Natwest set to profit despite lower interest rates May 13, 2025 Amidst a backdrop of waning interest rates, FTSE 100 banking giants such as Lloyds and Natwest look set to continue to profit, according to analysts. Lenders’ takings from net interest income (NII) remained steady in the first quarter, even after the Bank of England chopped interest rates four times to 4.5 per cent. Since then, [...]
To deliver growth, Lloyd’s of London’s new CEO has to be ruthless May 12, 2025 In order for Lloyd's of London to prosper, Patrick Tiernan must be ruthless in his leadership, writes LMA CEO Sheila Cameron.
Vanquis and Barclays lead surge in bank complaints amid motor finance May 7, 2025 Banking complaints rocketed by 76 per cent in the second half of 2024 as the motor finance scandal continued to haunt the sector, according to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS). The regulator revealed of the 141,846 complaints made to the FOS, 77 per cent were related to banking and credit at 109,155. This also marked [...]
Ministers call in HSBC, Natwest and Lloyds bosses for small business lending talks May 6, 2025 Top bank bosses were summoned for talks with ministers on Tuesday after a government report revealed that small businesses were having difficulty securing loans. Senior executives from HSBC, Natwest and Lloyds will be in attendance for the meeting, which will be chaired by minister for small business Gareth Thomas. A report from the Department of [...]
FTSE 100 lenders cash in on market turmoil but provisions climb May 5, 2025 FTSE 100 banking giants saw trading income spike in the first quarter as investors sold-off stocks in the face of geopolitical tensions, but tariff threats continued to weigh on future earnings. HSBC kicked off reporting season pocketing a $9.5bn (£7.1bn) pre-tax profit, which surged ahead of the $7.8bn pencilled in by analysts. Barclays and Natwest [...]
Lloyds’ finance boss slams ring-fencing amid waning growth forecast May 1, 2025 Lloyds‘ finance boss raised the alarm on lenders’ ability to help drive growth due to restrictions from the ring-fencing regime. The bank trimmed its UK GDP expectations and has projected a rise in unemployment in the latest warning sign for the health of the British economy. The FTSE 100 giant pencilled in 0.2 per cent [...]
Lloyds costs soar as lender increases provisions after tariff turmoil May 1, 2025 Lloyds Banking Group’s profit took a hit in the first three months of the year as the domestic-focused bank’s operating costs soared. The FTSE 100 giant, which includes Lloyds, Halifax and Bank of Scotland, met analyst expectations for pre-tax profit at £1.5bn – marking a seven per cent drop from the first quarter of 2024. [...]