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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Secure Trust Bank: Jobs at risk as lender exits motor finance

July 2, 2025

Specialist lender Secure Trust Bank has announced a “strategic pivot” away from its motor finance division in a bid to boost returns. The group said it will pause new lending within its vehicle finance division and “run off” its existing book, meaning it will manage its current portfolio until it naturally winds down. The bank [...]
British banks shed workers at fastest pace since 2018

July 2, 2025

British bankers were on the chopping block in 2024 as UK lenders marked the steepest drop in headcount since 2018 amid an industry-wide digital push. Total employee numbers at British lenders slumped 5.25 per cent to 580,371, falling to the lowest number in a decade. Standard Chartered and HSBC made the biggest culls at 4.5 [...]
Financial advisers sound alarm on lack of support for SMEs

July 2, 2025

Financial advisers have raised concern about the lack of support for small businesses in government policy as firms feel the pinch of economic pressures. Over half of advisers surveyed by alternative lender Thincats branded government policy as unsupportive of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) whilst just six per cent said it was supportive. Small businesses [...]
Santander snaps up TSB Bank for £2.9bn

July 1, 2025

Santander UK has acquired high street bank TSB in a landmark £2.9bn deal that will significantly beef up the lender’s market share. The bank’s bid for an all-cash takeover from its Spanish peer Banco Sabadell values TSB at five times its expected 2026 net income. TSB will add five million customers, £34bn in mortgages and [...]
Astrazeneca chief ‘wants to shift London listing to US’

July 1, 2025

The boss of Britain’s most valuable company, Astrazeneca, has reportedly voiced his preference to move the firm’s stock market listing to the United States. Sir Pascal Soriot, who has been at the helm of the pharma juggernaut since 2012, is said to have spoken privately about his desire to abandon the UK listing in favour [...]
National Wealth Fund boss calls for public finance consolidation

July 1, 2025

The boss of Labour’s National Wealth Fund has urged the government to remain open to consolidation of public finance institutions in a bid to ease confusion for the private sector. In a hearing on Tuesday, the chief executive of the National Wealth Fund (NWF) John Flint told MPs he would “encourage” the Treasury “not to [...]
Aviva’s £3.7bn takeover of Direct Line approved by UK watchdog

July 1, 2025

Aviva’s acquisition of smaller insurance peer Direct Line has been approved by the competitions watchdog, paving the way for the formation of Britain’s biggest home and motor insurer. The £3.7bn takeover will not be subject to a phase-two investigation, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said on Tuesday, after a preliminary probe to assess whether [...]
Government pledges to back UK fintech with regulation overhaul

July 1, 2025

The government has pledged a regulation shakeup to support UK fintech as it seeks to slash the red tape blocking innovation. Speaking at City Week, technology secretary Peter Kyle said the government’s new Regulatory Innovation Office (RIO) would develop new smart tools to make navigating regulatory procedures “faster, clearer and more accessible”. This will include [...]
Standard Chartered slapped with $2.7bn lawsuit over fraud scandal

July 1, 2025

Standard Chartered has been hit with a $2.7bn lawsuit over its alleged role in one of the world’s largest financial fraud cases, known as the 1MBD scandal. The London-headquartered lender is being accused of helping move and hide billions of dollars that were stolen from Malaysia’s 1MDB fund, by not sufficiently checking to see where [...]
Ofgem gives green light to landmark electric grid upgrade

July 1, 2025

The UK’s energy regulator has approved a £24bn investment to upgrade the UK’s energy infrastructure as a part of its green transition. The Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (Ofgem) move comes as the government renews its push for cleaner energy, despite backlash around the impact on prices. Over £15bn is set to be deployed [...]

Revealed: The luxury London pads getting Healey’s energy handout – while poorer areas miss out

Russia wins legal bid to come in from the cold in international ice hockey

Inside the St Paul’s Fabric ‘raves’, which are nothing like you think

By: Samuel Norman

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