Natwest Boxed launches savings account with The AA February 24, 2025 Natwest’s financial services platform Natwest Boxed has partnered with The AA to launch an instant savings account. Boxed, which comes from a joint venture between the FTSE 100 lender and European fintech Vodeno, will leverage its embedded finance products for AA customers starting from March 2025. The new savings account will be FSCS-protected and customers [...]
FTSE 100 lenders pocket record total profit February 21, 2025 Standard Chartered was the last of the FTSE 100’s biggest banks to release its annual results, as analysts praised the strong performance across all of the Big Five. Barclays, HSBC, Natwest, Lloyds and Standard Chartered booked an all-time high of £50.3bn in profit in 2024 and returned £35bn to investors. Russ Mould, investment director at [...]
UK banks differ from US on AI strategy February 20, 2025 Banks in the UK are more likely to focus artificial intelligence (AI) strategy on improving customer experience compared to their US rivals, a new report has revealed. NTT Data’s ‘Intelligent Banking in the Age of AI’ found 52 per cent of UK banks were using AI to enhance customer services, rather than cut jobs. This [...]
Barclays and Natwest drop climate targets from executive bonuses February 18, 2025 Banking giants Barclays and Natwest will both drop climate targets from their annual bonus schemes for senior executives. The move reflects a wider shift underway in the corporate world, removing a formal link between climate and diversity targets and remuneration. Both lenders will cut sustainability metrics as performance measures from annual award schemes, and instead roll [...]
HSBC set to unveil bigger profits as cost-cutting overhaul in focus February 16, 2025 HSBC is set to unveil bigger profits as investors prepare for an update on the bank’s cost-cutting overhaul, while earnings for Lloyds will be in focus amid a long-running motor finance probe. Rivals Barclays and NatWest set the tone for the banking sector when they reported stronger earnings this week, despite UK interest rates starting [...]
Analysts say ‘Buy’ Natwest shares after annual results February 14, 2025 Analysts have slapped a ‘Buy’ rating on Natwest shares after the bank’s annual results beat expectations. Peel Hunt analysts Robert Sage and Stuart Duncan said the lender’s strong performance in 2024 increased “conviction that market expectations can be delivered”. Natwest reported a £6.2bn pre-tax profit for 2024, up 0.3 per cent on 2023’s headline figure, [...]
Nigel Farage exploring private prosecution against Natwest February 14, 2025 The reform leader Nigel Farage is reported to have instructed a legal council to explore private criminal proceedings against Natwest Group over the debanking row
Natwest skims past profit expectations February 14, 2025 Natwest narrowly beat analysts’ annual profit expectations after posting a bump in its consumer lending. The FTSE 100 lender posted a £6.2bn pre-tax profit, ahead of £6.1bn pencilled in by analysts and up 0.3 per cent on 2023. Net loans to customers hit £368.5bn, an increase of £12.9bn, which reflected Natwest’s acquisition of Metro Bank’s [...]
Mark Kleinman: Bonfire of the regulators just beginning February 13, 2025 Mark Kleinman is Sky News’ City Editor and the man who gets the Square Mile talking in his weekly City AM column. This week, he tackles churn at the regulators, bankers’ bonuses and dilemmas at Deliveroo. Bonfire of the regulators is just beginning For Marcus Bokkerink, read Abby Thomas? The chief executive of the Financial Ombudsman Service last [...]
Barclays and Natwest to set tone for Big Four banks in year ahead February 12, 2025 As Britain’s Big Four banks prepare to post annual results, analysts expect “strong” performances, but warned of long-term challenges. Barclays and Natwest will lead the first round of results this week, with the pair reporting on Thursday and Friday respectively. This will be followed by HSBC on February 19 and Lloyds on February 20. The [...]