UK bank bosses and John Healey set for tax showdown Banking When banking lobbyists geared up for an offensive ahead of the 2025 Budget, a tax cut barely made the wishlist. Modest in their ambitions, advocates were preparing to settle for anything that didn’t see their already eye-wateringly high tax bill rise. That is until, City AM understands, officials advised them to make a cut a [...]
Meet the winners of the Santander X UK Awards 2026 Partner Santander’s flagship entrepreneurship competition, the Santander X UK Awards, gives university ventures, startups and SMEs the chance to pitch for a share of £150,000 in equity-free funding. Some 90 businesses were shortlisted across three categories this year, before being narrowed down to nine finalists. The judging panel included Baroness Nicky Morgan, Google’s Adam Khalifa and [...]
Santander and BMW in High Court spat over motor finance dispute Banking Santander and Volvo are taking BMW to the High Court over a dispute related to motor finance deals, City AM can reveal. The Spanish banking giant, along with Volvo Financial Services, is claiming the carmaker caused damages after auto dealers unlawfully re-sold the same luxury vehicles to BMW, leaving both firms claiming ownership over the [...]
Five lenders hike mortgage prices as interest rate threat looms September 8, 2026 Five lenders hiked the price on their mortgage deals to kick off the week as the threat of the Bank of England increasing interest rates looms over the UK economy. Barclays has raised its rates on a fleet of products by nearly 0.2 per cent, with its two-year fixed rate rising to 5.53 per cent [...]
Banks ombudsman on the hook for millions in legal fees to Barclays and Santander September 7, 2026 The UK’s banks ombudsman could be forced to pay millions to a group of the UK’s top lenders after the High Court quashed four decisions the body made earlier this year on overdrafts and credit cards. The Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) has been put on the hook for what could top £2m in legal fees after the court [...]
Treasury sought to cap motor finance payouts, court filings claim September 1, 2026 The government sought to cap payouts in the motor finance scandal at a level lenders could absorb and the City regulator acted “unlawfully” in failing to protect consumers, new court filings seen by City AM allege. Both the Treasury and Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) are facing fresh scrutiny over the motor finance redress scheme as [...]
Rachel Reeves to unveil next steps for ring-fencing reform at Mansion House July 13, 2026 Rachel Reeves will outline the next steps of her ring-fencing reforms at Mansion House on Tuesday, City AM can reveal, in what is expected to be one of her last acts in the Treasury. The Chancellor will launch a consultation to seek industry input on the implementation of a package of reforms announced in May, including the [...]
Halifax ends 173-year high street run as Lloyds ditches branding July 1, 2026 Lloyds Banking Group is set to ditch its Halifax brand in a move that will end the retail bank’s 173-year run on the high street. The FTSE 100 titan – whose subsidiaries also include Bank of Scotland and Scottish Widows – said on Wednesday it would rebrand Halifax under the central moniker of Lloyds. Lloyds [...]
Barclays and Lloyds join banking sector plan for digital ID June 25, 2026 Barclays and Lloyds are among a group of top UK lenders working on a plan that would see customers able to use digital identification tools in their banking app. The collective of banks – which also includes HSBC, Nationwide, Natwest and Santander – are working with industry body UK Finance on a process where users’ [...]
‘Very concerned’: City watchdog scolds motor finance lenders over £9bn redress scheme June 22, 2026 The City watchdog has warned motor finance lenders it is “very concerned” with how prepared the industry is to implement its £9bn redress scheme, City AM can reveal. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) fired out letters to over 100 firms last Friday following a review of the sector’s plans to implement its under-fire redress program. [...]