‘Delighted to be wrong’ – Sam Altman changes tune on AI job apocalypse fears Tech OpenAI boss Sam Altman has softened his warnings over AI wiping out white-collar work, saying the feared “jobs apocalypse” has so far failed to materialise despite the tech rapidly reshaping business decisions and operations. Speaking on Tuesday, Altman admitted he had expected AI to eliminate far more entry-level office jobs by now following the launch [...]
Fintech boss defends sacking entire HR department for ‘creating problems that didn’t exist’ Tech US fintech Bolt has become the latest company to openly link job cuts and restructuring to AI, after chief executive Ryan Breslow defended scrapping the firm’s HR department during a recent round of layoffs. Speaking at a Fortune event Breslow said Bolt’s HR function had become counterproductive as the company attempted to streamline operations. “We [...]
AI will ‘destroy and create jobs,’ says HSBC boss Banking The boss of Europe’s largest bank has warned that the growth of AI will both “destroy” and “create” new jobs as the banking industry continues to be reshaped in the face of new technology. Georges Elhedery, chief executive of HSBC, warned that the bank’s staff must avoid “fighting us” as it unveiled its latest AI [...]
Standard Chartered bets on AI as it cuts ‘lower value human capital’ May 19, 2026 Standard Chartered has announced plans to slash almost 8,000 back-office roles, stoking fears about the wide scale threat artificial intelligence poses to the global job market. The London-headquartered lender said it would reduce over 15 per cent of its support functions by 2030, equivalent to around 7,800 jobs, as boss Bill Winters pushed through a [...]
Emergency lifeline for collapsed banks doubled to £3bn May 18, 2026 The emergency credit fund that serves as a lifeline for collapsed lenders has been doubled as a result of “recent regulatory and operational developments”. The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) – working in tandem with the Treasury and Bank of England – has hiked its revolving credit facility capacity to £3bn from £1.45bn previously. The [...]
FTSE 100 banks are facing £2.5bn of headwinds – HSBC and Barclays are in the firing line May 6, 2026 The FTSE 100’s Big Five banks toasted a healthy profit stash in the first-quarter, but, says Samuel Norman, storm clouds are gathering on the horizon for the sector. The London market’s five biggest banks swallowed a bitter cocktail of economic risks in the first three months of the year leaving a bumper cash haul overshadowed [...]
Standard Chartered registers $190m charge on Iran war April 30, 2026 Standard Chartered’s impairment charges jumped in the first quarter as the bank set aside a hefty sum to cover volatility in the Middle East. The FTSE 100 giant booked $296m in credit impairment charges, with $190m of this coming from “precautionary management overlays” related to the war in Iran. The Asian-focused bank’s activity in the [...]
Bank of England Live: Interest rates held as hawks warn of ‘highly uncertain’ energy prices April 30, 2026 Welcome back to the City AM liveblog. The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee has today decided to hold interest rates at 3.75 per cent in a hawkish display. In last month’s decision, the Bank held rates in a unanimous decision. Afterwards, short-term gilt yields, which reflect government borrowing costs, sharply rose as traders priced [...]
FTSE 100 banks £16bn payday to face economic reality check April 27, 2026 Provisions for sour loans threaten to take a bite out of profit growth as Barclays kicks off FTSE 100 banks earnings season next week whilst economic tensions loom over the wider financial industry. UK banks will give a snapshot of the gathering tensions in the economy next week as the nation’s top lenders update the [...]
City AM Awards 2026: Meet the Finalists March 18, 2026 And the nominees are…. Personality of the Year Greg Jackson CBE The entrepreneur and CEO of Octopus Energy has become one of the UK’s most prominent business leaders, known for his straight talking and punchy views across a range of topics including UK entrepreneurship, the business environment, capital markets and, of course, energy. In August [...]