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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Santander becomes first major lender to loosen mortgage rules

March 28, 2025

Santander has become the first major UK lender to relax its mortgage rules following a nudge from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Homebuyers could be able to borrow an extra £35,000 on a mortgage under the changed rules. The UK’s fourth-largest mortgage lender will reduce rates on borrower’s stress tests, which are used to check [...]
HSBC investment bankers axed on bonus day received no bonus

March 27, 2025

HSBC issued no bonuses to axed investment bankers, despite letting them go on the day they were set to learn their pay award figures. The FTSE giant told staff in its investment arm last month that they were facing the chop after the firm announced in January it would wind down mergers and acquisitions advisory [...]
Deutsche Bank bets £250m on UK fintech Abound

March 27, 2025

Deutsche Bank announced on Thursday morning it had given a £250m backing to UK fintech Abound, boosting the firm’s lending capacity. The latest round of funding compounds existing support from Citi, Waterfall Asset Management and LuminArx – and takes the fintech’s total credit ceiling to £1.6bn. Abound said the additional capital would provide “firepower to [...]
Arbuthnot shares dip as falling interest rates weigh on profit

March 27, 2025

Arbuthnot Banking Group faced the sting of easing interest rates in its annual results report as profit at the historic lender tumbled. The AIM-listed bank recorded £35.1m in profit before tax in its full-year results, a drop of over £10m from the £47.1m booked in 2023. Shares at the lender were down as much as [...]
Shawbrook Bank reports profit slump despite loan book growth

March 27, 2025

Shawbrook Bank announced a boost to its deposit and loan book in its annual results, driven by commercial and retail markets. The bank’s loan book grew 16 per cent to £15.2bn in 2024, compared to the £13.3bn recorded in 2023. Despite this, profit before tax dipped to £294m, a minor drop from the £302m booked [...]
Spring Statement 2025: Businesses cautious on growth, expect further tax hikes

March 26, 2025

Rachel Reeves may have ended her Spring Statement upbeat on long-term prospects after an upgrade from the Office of Budget Responsibility, but businesses don’t seem to be buying it. The Chancellor announced that the OBR had upgraded growth forecasts for the coming years, as she brushed aside the 2025 outlook which was slashed in half. [...]
Spring Statement 2025: Markets ‘shrug off’ speech as gilt sales revised lower

March 26, 2025

The Debt Management Office (DMO) said it was planning £299bn of gilt sales in 2025 to 2026, slightly below the £302bn initially expected despite the government’s borrowing plans. However, this still marked the most extensive package since the pandemic. The DMO said it would issue the smallest selection of long-maturity gilts in its 27-year history [...]
Spring Statement 2025: Markets and bonds tread water ahead of ‘testing day’

March 26, 2025

Markets and bonds were relatively flat on Wednesday morning as analysts predicted Rachel Reeves’ Spring Statement would mark a “testing day”. The FTSE 100 had minor gains following market open, with Marks and Spencer leading the index’s biggest risers. The mid-cap FTSE 250 had a slight uptick, led by a surge in retailer Ocado after [...]
Reeves urged to drive financial literacy in Spring Statement

March 25, 2025

In what will be a busy week for the Chancellor, Rachel Reeves has been urged to not forget the importance of improving financial literacy in her Spring Statement. Jordan Sinclair, the president of financial services firm Robinhood UK, told City AM the UK has “the ingredients in order to improve” but now was the time [...]
City regulator faces grilling on Treasury’s growth agenda

March 25, 2025

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) was grilled by the Treasury Committee on Tuesday after it unveiled its new five-year strategy. Members of the committee questioned the gap between the government’s growth agenda and how the FCA was prepared to deregulate. Chair of the Treasury Committee Dame Meg Hillier, said the regulator’s structure led to it [...]

Airtel Money listing shows London is still one of the best places to grow a company

Britain’s array of top-class live sport isn’t celebrated nearly enough

Inherit film review: Thai horror explores society’s Faustian pact

By: Samuel Norman

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