Standard Life sleepwalks towards a pay revolt May 13, 2016 First Schroders, now Standard Life: it’s turning into a season of grand City institutions firing bullets into their own feet. Fresh from the calamitous handling of Michael Dobson’s elevation to the chair at Schroders, its Scottish-based peer is making an even bigger pig’s ear of a process it should be able to navigate in its [...]
City Moves for 13 May 2016 | Who’s switching jobs May 13, 2016 Currency Cloud Currency Cloud, the international payments engine, has announced the appointment of Fiona Tee as chief financial officer (CFO). Fiona brings over 30 years’ financial and commercial experience within the technology and software industries. Previous CFO roles include Mondex International, a leading early adopter of digital payments, Intelligent Environments Europe, and Anite Telecoms. In [...]
Credible deterrence: What is the real cost of FCA Enforcement proceedings? May 12, 2016 The financial services industry faces ever-more intrusive regulatory scrutiny and tougher penalties. Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) fines reached £1.4bn in 2014. This compares with just over £89m in 2010 and only £7.5 million in 2002. However, fines are not the only cost of an FCA enforcement intervention – reputation damage can be far more painful. [...]
Five signs it’s time to start seriously investing in digital skills May 12, 2016 As a manager or business owner, when should I take steps to improve the digital know how in my organisation? It’s a crucial question that has crossed the mind of nearly every business leader as they struggle to keep up with new technology, security concerns and employees’ desire to keep learning. What are the clues or [...]
Barclays rules out Android Pay, going it alone with own mobile pay app May 12, 2016 Barclays is going it alone when it comes to mobile pay, rolling out its own contactless payment app on Android to all its customers, eschewing Google's own soon to launch Android Pay service. The bank's customers will be able to pay with just a swipe of their debit card from June with Barclays' Contactless Mobile [...]
Former Barclays banker pleaded guilty to Libor-rigging offence May 11, 2016 A former Barclays banker pleaded guilty to offences related to Libor-rigging around 19 months ago, fraud squad prosecutors said in court today. Peter Johnson pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud in October 2014 after charges were brought against him earlier that year, but a reporting restriction preventing him from being named was not lifted until [...]
This is Me: How Barclays is breaking mental health stigma – and the rest of the City can too May 11, 2016 Since 2013, Barclays has been working to raise awareness of mental health in the workplace through our campaign “This is Me”. As part of our ambition to be the most accessible and inclusive bank, it is important to Barclays that colleagues can be themselves at work. Addressing the cultural silence around mental health was fundamental [...]
Six of the best challenger banks: Disgruntled with HSBC, Lloyds, RBS and Barclays? We highlight the cream of the alternatives May 11, 2016 The big four high street banks – that’s Barclays, Lloyds, HSBC and RBS – have had their fair share of scandal over the years and many people have been left disgruntled with the service they’ve received. There’s been a lot of inertia in banking, with few people willing to move their main account. Nearly 60 per [...]
At the close: Markets up as even the weather can’t dent City spirits May 10, 2016 Traders clearly brought their umbrellas to work today as a London downpour and a spot of cloudy economic data was not enough to stop European markets from posting an impressive gain for the day. The FTSE 100 closed up 0.7 per cent at 6,156.65, the Cac 40 in France put on a modest 0.2 per [...]
Watford hope to strike it rich after unique deal with City FX trading company May 10, 2016 Watford have struck a unique deal with a City-based foreign exchange trading company that will not only boost the club’s commercial income but, they hope, may also save “very significant” sums in the transfer market. The Hornets are the first Premier League team to enter into such an agreement, which they believe will give them [...]