It takes a bit of thought. When you lend money you take a haircut. That’s what negative rates mean. It’s supposed to stop banks...

Last week the Bank of England defended its position on bank capital after it had been urged to rethink by Sir John Vickers. It’s quite...

According to the FT the government has borrowed £74.2bn for the financial year to date. With the population of the UK circa 64 million...

How much does it cost you to save? Take someone who saves £5,000 per annum for 30 years in a tax free environment like a pension or ISA....

If you’ve bought flat pack furniture you will recognise its advantages. But it has its downsides too. It’s heavy and has instructions....

Talking with a group this week I was reminded about the paradox between monetary policy and regulation. Cutting the repo rate to almost...

Asset valuation is of major importance to banks. It is required for a host of reasons including statutory reporting, credit exposures,...

In banking stress testing is in vogue. But how effective is it? For engineers the bar on safety is high after all life itself is at...

Crossbred dogs may not win shows but they are supposed to be more robust than thoroughbreds. It means that a pooch that is a mixture...

In the recent shake up of pensions it seems likely that retirees will be able to sell their existing annuities. This indeed offers...

Retail experts tell me that German shoppers are somewhat different from their British counterparts. Apparently Germans like to buy...

Shortly before his retirement Mervin King the last Governor of the Bank of England explained that as a result of central bank policy...

Years ago bank traders treated FX markets with caution (particularly if they weren’t experienced currency dealers) indeed other areas of...

When we deal with money how reliant are we on the digital world? Save, borrow or pay when you deal with banks you will almost always be...

When it comes to banking SMEs don’t have a lot of choice. If you want the full service range there are only a handful of banks to turn to....

Do massive fines perpetuate the problem? Terry Smith recently explained to the FT why he didn’t invest in banks. High leverage and...

At the shop I was charged £44.75 for three weeks of newspapers. The paper costs £10 per week. Delivery was an additional £3.15 per week....

For the last six years central banks have tried to get us to spend more. One way to do this is to lower interest rates. It makes saving...

Bankers are again voicing their concerns over the cost of regulation and its potential to drive business elsewhere. Anecdotally they are...

Carry trades are frequently used to beat markets. They involve buying an asset that has a higher return than the cost of finance. Profits...