By: Ali Lyon

Chief reporter Ali Lyon is the chief reporter at City AM, responsible for covering the full gamut of business, finance and wealth news. He has been at City AM full-time since July 2024. Get in touch with tips via email: ali.lyon@cityam.com. Follow Ali on X: @alilyon_94

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Tory MP Patrick Spencer denies sexual assault charges

June 16, 2025

Conservative MP Patrick Spencer has denied two counts of sexual assault, alleged to have been committed at Soho’s exclusive Groucho Club. The MP for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Monday where he confirmed his date of birth and full name before submitting a not guilty plea to the charges. [...]
Private school VAT campaigners lose court challenge

June 13, 2025

A group of families with children at private schools have lost their High Court battle over the government’s decision to apply VAT on school fees, with a judge ruling it did not sufficiently infringe on pupils’ human rights. Campaigners had brought legal action against the Treasury, arguing that the change to private schools’ tax status [...]
City regulators’ growth mandate ‘pointless’ without major reform

June 13, 2025

The “entrenched culture of risk aversion” at the City’s two flagship regulators has stymied meaningful progress on their mandates to aid economic growth, a House of Lords report has argued, despite persistent pressure from Westminster for them to boost UK competitiveness. In a withering assessment of the efforts made by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) [...]
Four in 10 entrepreneurs mulling UK exit

June 13, 2025

Four in 10 UK-based entrepreneurs are considering moving their firm overseas, a fresh poll has found, in further evidence the government’s crackdown on wealth and Britain’s stagnant economy are driving people away from the country. According to audit shop S&W’s Business Owners Sentiment Survey, 39 per cent of the UK’s entrepreneurs are mulling a move [...]
FCA chief: Court delays denying victims justice

June 12, 2025

Delays in the UK court system are denying victims of financial crime justice and preventing better regulation of the finance industry, the boss of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has said. Nikhil Rathi told City AM that his organisation was working “really hard to accelerate [its] investigations” but that the slow pace of high-profile court [...]
Spending Review: Khan slams lack of Met and infrastructure cash

June 11, 2025

Sir Sadiq Khan has launched a scathing assessment of the Chancellor’s long-awaited Spending Review, warning it will strangle his ability to deliver new affordable homes and create jobs, and mean fewer police officers on the capital’s streets. In a statement released soon after Rachel Reeves concluded her speech, London’s newly-knighted mayor said he was “concerned” [...]
FCA appoints deputy chief to steer growth mission

June 10, 2025

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has made Sarah Pritchard its deputy chief executive, a new role the watchdog has forged to reflect its growing remit and bolster its efforts to support the government’s growth mandate. The City’s main watchdog confirmed Pritchard’s appointment in an announcement on Tuesday, with the FCA’s integration with the Payments Systems [...]
Exclusive: Nikhil Rathi’s FCA is ready to go on the offensive

June 10, 2025

Nikhil Rathi’s first five-year term at the helm of the FCA was dominated by difficult situations – most beyond his control, some firmly in it. But after being reappointed by Rachel Reeves in April, and with the added pressure of a new growth mandate from government, he outlines to Ali Lyon what he hopes his [...]
London must ‘market its successes better’ to avoid another Wise

June 7, 2025

Britain must emulate the success of Nasdaq and get better at trumpeting its business success stories if it wants to attract more companies to list in London, one of the UK’s top fintech venture capital investors has said. Speaking to City AM the day that payments darling Wise revealed plans to ditch its primary listing [...]
FCA lifts ban on crypto trackers in growth push

June 6, 2025

The Financial Conduct Authority is poised to lift its ban on offering a type of crypto tracker to retail investors even though it could mean they “lose all their money”, in the latest sign of loosening financial red tape in a bid to help kickstart growth. The City watchdog has proposed allowing investment platforms to [...]

Iran and Russia to target Fifa World Cup, threat experts say

Iran and Russia to target Fifa World Cup, threat experts say

I’m 50 – but I feel young dining at Simpson’s in the Strand

By: Ali Lyon

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