Bank of England holds interest rates amid low growth and trade tensions March 20, 2025 The Bank of England has held interest rates at 4.5 per cent as worries over a global trade war flare up. Rate-setter Swati Dhingra, an external member on the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), was the lone wolf who voted for a 25 basis point cut. The decision saw Catherine Mann split from Dhingra after the [...]
IT outages: Are UK banks failing to modernise? March 20, 2025 Imagine it’s payday, and you’re trying to pay your bills or make a critical purchase, only to discover that your bank’s system has gone down. For millions of customers at Britain’s major banks, this nightmare is all too familiar. Over the past two years, nine of the UK’s banks were offline for more than 800 [...]
City regulator appoints Asia-Pacific director in growth push March 20, 2025 A top director at the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) will head up a new role in Asia as part of the regulator’s bid to boost growth, City AM has learned. Camille Blackburn, who is currently the director of wholesale buy-side at the regulator, will head up growth operations in the Asia-Pacific region. This follows the [...]
Rathbones chief Paul Stockton retires March 20, 2025 Rathbones group chief executive Paul Stockton is set to retire from his role after six years in the job. Stockton, who has worked at the asset manager for the last 16 years, will step down from the firm at the end of September, the company’s said today. He will be succeeded by Jonathan Sorrell who [...]
Fast broadband ‘revolution’ in final phase, Ofcom says March 20, 2025 The roll-out of ultrafast broadband across the UK is in its “final phase” and could reach nearly all homes by 2027, Ofcom has said. The industry regulator said data it had compiled from telecoms firms indicated 96 per cent homes and businesses would have access to full-fibre by 2027 with the right investment and regulation. [...]
UK wage growth remains hot as Bank of England set to decide on interest rates March 20, 2025 Wage growth has continued to soar, new figures have revealed. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said that annual regular pay, excluding bonuses, grew 5.9 per cent between November 2024 and January 2025. Total pay growth, which includes bonuses, increased by 5.8 per cent. “Overall pay growth remains relatively strong, with pay growth high in [...]
Trump is making Russia the next IOC president’s burning issue March 20, 2025 If Trump can claim to have brokered peace in Ukraine, and with swathes of the world still beholden to Russia, the IOC will have to accept them back into the Olympics, says Ed Warner. The final bell has sounded at the IBA Women’s World Boxing Championships in Nis, Serbia. The tournament’s medal table is emblematic [...]
The Capitalist: Feisty wonks, the Tooth Fairy and a CEO under citizen’s arrest March 20, 2025 Wonks at the CPS get feisty, the Tooth Fairy cuts costs and a CEO under citizen's arrest; catch up on the latest drama in The Capitalist.
London closes in on New York as top financial hub but risks remain March 20, 2025 London has edged closer to becoming the world’s top financial centre, fresh research shows, but concerns have been raised over the City’s future competitiveness. The 37th edition of Z/Yen Group’s Global Financial Centres Index (GFCI 37) showed London maintained its second-place ranking amongst the world’s top financial centres, whilst climbing 12 points from its last [...]
Is Sadiq Khan finally getting something right on London’s nightlife? March 20, 2025 It has taken eight years – and the appointment of one disastrous night czar – but Sadiq Khan is finally listening to industry when it comes to the future of London’s after hours leisure economy, writes James Ford As a former aide to the previous Mayor of London, it is very rare that I find [...]