Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) asset management market shake-up: How the City has reacted – Aberdeen Asset Management, Gina Miller, AJ Bell June 28, 2017 The financial watchdog has announced its plans to reform the asset management market, after carrying out a review of the £7 trillion industry over the past two years. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) launched a competition investigation into the sector in 2015, and today the regulator made recommendations for remedies in three areas to address [...]
Lloyds Bank completes £1.9bn MBNA credit card deal to “strengthen” position in the UK June 1, 2017 Lloyds Bank today completed its £1.9bn takeover of credit card firm MBNA from Bank of America. The deal to buy MBNA is the first transaction by Lloyds since the financial crisis. The last major transaction by Lloyds was its ill-fated purchase of HBOS in 2008. The UK government sold its final shareholding in Lloyds last [...]
One year until The EU General Data Protection Regulation: The business world speaks out about the biggest ever overhaul of data legislation May 25, 2017 Exactly one year from today, “the most lobbied piece of legislation in history” – the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) – will be enacted, radically overhauling the relationship businesses have with personal data through a raft of new obligations and consumer rights. The way firms collect, store, process and protect the personal information of [...]
Energy price cap: Here’s how the City is reacting to the Conservative plan to cap energy prices May 9, 2017 Yesterday, Prime Minister Theresa May promised the Conservative party will put a cap on energy prices if it holds a majority after the election. The decision has caused an eruption of opinions from energy bosses, consumer groups and business firms. Here’s what they’re saying… “Poorly justified political meddling” The Institute of Economic Affairs said the [...]
How to make Brexit the insurance industry’s next big opportunity May 5, 2017 Singapore, Qatar, Dubai and Bermuda. Forget worrying about British-based businesses moving to EU capitals – these are the jurisdictions with which we must compete if our vital insurance industry is to thrive. Over the next two years, there is a risk that so much energy will be expended on Brexit negotiations that we will neglect [...]
Why do people pursue careers in finance? May 3, 2017 Committing to an occupation that will consume 40 or more hours each week for decades is a fairly big decision. LinkedIn research shows that millennials will change jobs four times on average before they reach age 32, job-hopping twice as often as Gen Xers and much more than earlier generations. Each job decision has an [...]
What Macron’s victory means for investors: seven questions answered April 25, 2017 Stock markets surged and bond yields fell sharply following the results of the first round of the French election. Former economy minister, Emmanuel Macron, finished in first place with 23.9%, ahead of anti-EU candidate Marine Le Pen with 21.4%, making him easily favourite for the second round due to be held on 7 May. Gains [...]
British banks threatened by rise in consumer credit the Bank of England warns April 4, 2017 The rapid growth of lending to consumers risks weakening the resilience of British banks, according to the Bank of England body tasked with maintaining the UK’s financial stability. Weaker underwriting standards could “reduce the resilience of lenders to shocks”, the Financial Policy Committee said, according to the minutes from its latest meeting. The FPC said [...]
The UK has awarded 25 oil exploration licenses for under-explored areas of the North Sea March 23, 2017 The UK has awarded 25 licences for oil and gas exploration across frontier areas of the North Sea. Licences were issued to 17 companies, and for the first time in 20 years they all focused on under-explored regions of the UK Continental Shelf (UKCS), the Oil and Gas Authority (OGA) said. Although the OGA said [...]
Britain is right to reject EEA membership: As an Icelander, I should know March 23, 2017 The British government is absolutely right to reject remaining a member of the European Economic Area (EEA) after leaving the European Union. The government is also quite right to say that, by leaving the EU, Britain will at the same time exit the EEA, which includes all the EU member states plus three of the [...]