By: Samuel Norman

Senior City Reporter Samuel is a Senior City Reporter covering banking and fintech as well as stories on capital markets and economics. He also leads on City AM's morning liveblog from 7am everyday. He has previously written for the Daily Mail and The i Paper and worked for Sky News as an election stringer. He enjoys writing in-depth analysis of major blue-chip firms and start-ups and also industry trends. He can be contacted at samuel.norman@cityam.com and posts on LinkedIn and X at x.com/samnormanwrites.

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Bank of England interest rate cut ‘almost certain’ after poor growth

July 11, 2025

Fresh growth figures have fuelled speculation of an August interest rate cut in a bid to give the waning UK economy a shot of life. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed on Friday the UK economy shrunk for the second consecutive month with a 0.1 per cent contraction in May. Deutsche Bank’s chief economist [...]
Rachel Reeves risks ‘serious damage’ with tax hikes, OBR member warns

July 11, 2025

Fears of another Rachel Reeves’ tax raid are growing after fresh figures revealed the economy shrank in May, but a member of the OBR has warned the Chancellor against drastic measures, including tax hikes. The Chancellor is facing renewed pressure, with economists warning that the government’s £190bn spending splurge, sporadic U-turns, and poor growth figures are set [...]
UK economy contracts 0.1 per cent in blow to Rachel Reeves

July 11, 2025

Rachel Reeves’ waning growth agenda has been dealt another blow after the UK economy contracted 0.1 per cent in May. The Chancellor has endured a bruising few weeks after government U-turns and spending splurges have cut into the fiscal headroom she outlined in the Autumn. Fresh figures from the Office for National Statistics have confirmed [...]
Which UK banks are next in line for a takeover?

July 11, 2025

As the next wave of banking consolidation kicks off, specialist lenders are in the fray to be swallowed up. The industry has seen a flood of mergers and acquisitions in recent years, of which the latest was a landmark tie-up between Santander and TSB Bank. Santander snapped up 12-year old British high street lender TSB [...]
UK’s financial services stronghold slips

July 10, 2025

The UK’s position as a financial services leader has cracked as under-investment and staff reductions weigh on the sector. Nearly half of senior financial professionals believe the UK’s dominance is waning, research from the CRIF found. Over 40 per cent said they would no longer consider the country a global leader in the industry. Sara [...]
FTSE 100 smashes intra day high as investors call Trump’s bluff

July 10, 2025

The FTSE 100 surpassed its all-time high on Thursday with investors unfazed by the latest barrage of trade threats from President Donald Trump. The UK’s flagship index rallied over one per cent in morning trading to over 8,970. This topped a previous intra-day record of 8,908.82 set on March 3. Miners pioneered Thursday’s jump with [...]
Jupiter snaps up UK’s largest asset manager for non-profits

July 10, 2025

Jupiter Fund Management has acquired CCLA – the UK’s largest investment manager for non-profit organisations – in a bid to expand its UK reach. The deal, which values CCLA at £100m on a 100 per cent equity basis, will mark Jupiter’s entry into the non-profit investment arena. The FTSE 250 firm will add CCLA’s £15.1bn [...]
Banks shut eight branches a week since 2016

July 10, 2025

British banks have accelerated their retreat from the high street, shutting an average of eight branches a week since 2016 in a dash to bulk up digital offerings. Nearly 3,700 sites closed between 2016 and 2024, creating 41 ‘banking deserts,’ which refer to local authorities where at least one branch shut for every 10,000 residents. [...]
Fintech leads surge in London finance hiring

July 10, 2025

Fintech helped lead roaring growth in London’s finance hiring for the second quarter of the year as demand for risk professionals surged amid a more moribund jobs market for traditional lenders. New financial services jobs vacancies rose three per cent quarter-on-quarter, according to Morgan McKinley’s London Employment Monitor while Greater London fintech hiring is expected [...]
Bank of England hits Mastercard subsidiary with £12m fine

July 9, 2025

A Mastercard-owned company has been fined almost £12m by the Bank of England after it failed to fully comply with a regulatory order to fix weaknesses in its risk management. Vocalink – which was acquired by Mastercard in 2017 – has been slapped with the £11.9m fine due to failing to meet directions from the [...]

Starmer took sport freebies worth tens of thousands of pounds while PM

Starmer took sport freebies worth tens of thousands of pounds while PM

The PlayStation Portal 2026 review: Japanese innovation, hampered by UK infrastructure

By: Samuel Norman

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