The Finanser’s Week: 9th March 2015 – 15th March 2015

Our biggest stories of the past week are ...

Are we going through a Kodak/Nokia moment in banking?

A brainstorming session with a group of banks raised this question: are we going through a Kodak moment in banking?  Are we seeing a Nokia change?  Will banks miss the tipping point and die from the reformation of the internet, or will we respond and change in time?

UK Financial Inclusion Report Recommends 22 Things For 2020 (Some For Banks)

Yesterday the UK’s Financial Inclusion Commission published their report on Financial Inclusion for the UK.  The Financial Inclusion Commission is an independent body of experts and parliamentarians who came together to put financial inclusion back on the political agenda ahead of the 2015 General

The Finanser interviews: René Frijters, Founder and CEO of Knab Bank (Aegon's digital first bank)

Following on with our regular weekly interview the Finanser talks this week with René Frijters, Founder and CEO of the Dutch digital bank Knab.  Knab is the digital first bank funded by Aegon.  In Aegon’s latest results summary, there are some interesting comments.

How will banks differentiate in the future?

I was asked this question today and, after thinking about it a while, I think banks are moving towards being lifestyle choices rather than payments processors. 

After the glitch, RBS closes GTS (or how a global bank becomes a national one)

I was surprised to see friend of the Financial Services Club Carole Berndt leave Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) for Australian shores in January (actually Hong Kong with ANZ).  Even though she’s an Aussie, the surprise was that Carole had only moved to RBS to shake up their Global Transaction Services (GTS) business the year before, having been specifically poached from Bank of America Merrill Lynch for the role.  Something was up and the radar wondered what?

The major general news stories of the past week include ... 

Federal Reserve rejects Santander and Deutsche Bank capital plans - The Telegraph
Fed highlights problems in governance, internal controls and risk assessment in both banks

The 'death' of British investment banks is nothing of the sort - The Telegraph
UK firms seem to binge and starve more than their international peers. Some do die. But others survive and reinvent themselves. The industry endures

Aldermore shares leap as bank gets float away at second attempt - The Telegraph
Challenger bank hands hundreds of staff bonuses of up to £1,000 after £650m IPO

Apple Watch: Wall Street and the City react - The Independent
Apple unveiled its most anticipated product in years yesterday – the Apple Watch.

Is Bitcoin Africa's unlikely saviour? - BBC
Could Bitcoin be Africa's migrant workers' saviour?

Barclays 'misleading shareholders' - BBC
A leading pension body has called for Sir John Sunderland, chair of Barclays' pay review committee, to resign.

Eurozone not viable, says fund boss - BBC
The eurozone is not viable in its current form, one of the UK's most successful fund managers has warned.

After years of scandal, finally a 'civilised' bank - The Independent
A banking challenger for small and medium-sized business customers is aiming to raise £10m in funding ahead of a launch this year. 

Banks most at risk from Brexit, report says - Financial Times
Trade surplus means financial sector less able to strike a deal

Challenger bank Secure Trust makes business lending push - The Telegraph
Launch of bank's asset finance division adds to growing use of secured SME loans

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