By: Chris Dorrell

Chris Dorrell is a freelance journalist and City AM contributor. He was previously City AM's banking and then economics reporter. When Chris is not breaking news, he can often be found playing with his band Totally Amorphous.

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‘Milestone in returning NatWest to full private ownership’ as government sells £1.26bn worth of shares

May 22, 2023

The government has sold £1.26bn worth of its shares in NatWest as it continues to sell-off its stake in the bank it bailed out after the 2008 financial crisis. The shares, sold at 268.4p each, represent 4.95 per cent of NatWest’s share capital and takes it stake below 40 per cent. The Economic Secretary to [...]
Experts question surge in buybacks after record spree in 2022

May 22, 2023

Experts have raised questions about the spate of share buybacks undertaken by UK companies over the past year. Buybacks reached record levels globally in 2022 according to recent figures from Janus Henderson, rising 22 per cent year-on-year to hit $1.3trn. Buybacks were worth 94 per cent of dividends in 2022, compared to 52 per cent [...]
Appetite for ESG investing falls – but could tighter regulation improve its performance?

May 19, 2023

ESG is sliding down the list of investment priorities as investors refocus on maximising returns amid ESG’s poor performance and wider market volatility. According to the latest research by Charles Schwab UK, in two years the number of investors who believe companies with strong Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) credentials are attractive investment options has [...]
UK and EU publish draft MOU to improve post-Brexit financial regulatory cooperation

May 19, 2023

The UK and the EU’s top body have published the draft of a memorandum of understand, intended to improve post-Brexit regulatory cooperation on financial services. The draft agreement commits the two to “jointly endeavour to pursue a robust and ambitious bilateral regulatory cooperation in the area of financial services”. The MOU was heralded as a [...]
Klarna UK boss quits but predicts BNPL firm will “trailblaze” in payments and banking

May 19, 2023

Klarna’s UK boss Alex Marsh announced today that he was stepping down having been at the firm for four and half years. Marsh, who joined Swedish buy-now pay-later (BNPL) firm Klarna in 2018, described his time at Klarna as “nothing short of phenomenal”. However, he said that a recent family tragedy has “brought home that [...]
Shares in Magners maker C&C slump 17 per cent after leadership shakeup and botched software upgrade

May 19, 2023

Shares in beer and cider brewer C&C slumped today as the firm said plans to upgrade software at a subsidiary hit big obstacles, forcing a leadership shakeup. Shares in C&C, which makes Magners and Bulmers, were down nearly17 per cent on Friday morning. The company said it has encountered “significant challenges” when rolling out new [...]
FTSE 100 close: London markets round off the week higher as investors boosted by improved consumer confidence

May 19, 2023

Markets closed higher on Friday as investors were boosted by an increasingly positive consumer outlook in the UK. The capital’s premier index jumped 0.40 per cent to 7,773.80 points, while the domestically-focused mid-cap FTSE 250 index, which is more aligned with the health of the UK economy, remained roughly steady at 19,300.04 points. Investors were [...]
Nationwide hands out £340m to customers as it reports 40 per cent profit boost from higher interest rates

May 19, 2023

Nationwide’s profit jumped in 2023 as the building society became the latest firm to benefit from higher interest rates. The building society’s pretax profit climbed nearly 40 per cent to £2.2bn from £1.6bn last year despite a slight increase in costs. Nationwide’s net interest margin, the difference between what it pays out and receives in [...]
Lloyds AGM hit by flexible working protests after telling staff to come back to the office

May 18, 2023

Lloyds’ annual general meeting (AGM) was hit by protests about its flexible working policies and its fossil fuel financing, but all motions ended up passing with massive majorities. Speaking at the bank’s AGM in Edinburgh on Thursday, representatives from Unite argued that trialled changes to its hybrid working policies disadvantaged women, carers and working parents. [...]
Crisis over? Pacwest and Western Alliance rise again as investors bet worst is over

May 18, 2023

Investors are increasingly hopeful that the crisis which has engulfed US regional banks over the past couple of months is coming to an end. Some of the banks which have been worst affected by fears of a broader banking crisis in the wake of the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) and First Republic have [...]

The Works activist investor hits back at retailer’s ‘absurd’ claims

Royal Hospital Chelsea to host top Arabian horse competition

London Sports Festival moves from 3×3 basketball success to pickleball at the City of London Corporation’s Guildhall Yard

By: Chris Dorrell

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