By: Samuel Norman

Senior City Reporter Samuel is a Senior City Reporter covering all the top financial institutions from retail banks to fintechs as well as stories on capital markets and economics. He has broken stories on some of the biggest names in the City and regularly writes in-depth analysis pieces on companies and industry trends. Samuel also leads on City AM's morning liveblog from 7am everyday. He writes a weekly column found in print and online on Wednesdays. He can be contacted at samuel.norman@cityam.com and posts on LinkedIn and X at x.com/samnormanwrites.

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Close Brothers shares plunge as motor finance costs mount

March 18, 2025

Banking group Close Brothers plunged to a £104m loss in the first half of 2025 after the firm set aside provisions for the motor finance scandal. The lender recorded a pre-tax loss in the first half of its 2025 financial year, compared to a profit of £88.1m in the same period of 2024 due to [...]
Reeves doubles down on fiscal rules amidst waning headroom

March 17, 2025

Rachel Reeves doubled down on her fiscal rules in an interview with Bloomberg TV on Monday, despite speculation that economic conditions have left the chancellor with little or no room for manoeuvre. Following the Autumn Budget, Reeves was left with a £9.9bn buffer to maintain her key rule for day-to-day spending to be funded by [...]
AI adoption at UK banks lags behind US rivals

March 17, 2025

UK banks are playing catch up to their US and European counterparts on AI adoption, new research has revealed. Evident Insight’s latest Responsible AI Report showed US banks led the way for AI specialists, with 20 positions alone at JPMorganChase – three times the average lender. Co-founder and co-chief executive of Evident Insights Alexandra Mousavizadeh [...]
British fintech unicorn OakNorth acquires US community bank

March 17, 2025

OakNorth, the British digital banking unicorn, has acquired a US community bank as it eyes overseas expansion. The firm announced on Monday it had agreed on a stock-for-stock transaction for Michigan-based Community Unity Bank (CUB). The acquisition is subject to regulatory approval and follows the Federal Reserve and New York State Department of Financial Services [...]
Phoenix Group shares soar after upgrading outlooks

March 17, 2025

Shares in Phoenix Group rallied over six per cent on Monday morning after the firm smashed its cash generation target and upgraded its future guidance. The FTSE 100 company, which owns insurer Standard Life, recorded a 31 per cent increase in operating profit for 2024, which hit £825m. The group met its 2026 target of [...]
Over half of business leaders expect a recession this year

March 17, 2025

Business leaders’ confidence is at a “crossroads” just weeks ahead of the Government’s tax hikes kicking in, according to fresh research. BCG’s Centre for Growth surveyed 1,500 bosses in its “State of UK Business” report and found 57 per think a recession is likely this year. This follows Friday’s release from the Office for National [...]
City regulator considering scrapping £100 contactless limit

March 14, 2025

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) announced on Friday it was looking for opinions on scrapping the contactless card limit and whether changes could benefit the UK economy. The current cap prohibits customers from making contactless card payments of more than £100 – however, the rule is set for review in a bid to boost growth. [...]
Vanquis shares plunge as complaints costs soar

March 14, 2025

Specialist lender Vanquis Banking Group said its “turnaround” was “on track” in its annual results despite suffering a loss in 2024. The Bradford-based lender reported a £34.8m loss, a drastic drop from its pre-tax profit of £17.3m in 2023. The cost of dealing with complaints related to the company’s historic lending practices soared and took [...]
Reeves to announce £2bn defence boost to secure more orders from allies

March 14, 2025

The government has pledged an extra £2bn to support UK defence exporters in a bid to unlock more orders from international allies. This increases the lending capacity of the UK Export Finance’s (UKEF), the country’s official export credit agency, to £10bn. The UKEF’s Direct Lending scheme provides loans to other countries, which allow them to [...]
Reeves told to scrap ‘jobs tax’ after headline figures questioned

March 12, 2025

A fresh row has erupted just weeks before Rachel Reeves‘ national insurance tax hike comes into effect after the Treasury’s headline figures were scrutinized. When announcing her 1.2 per cent hike to employers’ national insurance contributions (NIC) at the Autumn Budget, Reeves said it would raise “£25bn per year by the end of the forecast period.” [...]

Xenom: Hyrox and CrossFit mash-up backed by tech moguls set for London bow

Xenom: Hyrox and CrossFit mash-up backed by tech moguls set for London bow

Scotch Malt Whisky Society’s Caskmaster 2026 championship comes to London

By: Samuel Norman

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