Chris Skinner's blog Shaping the future of finance

During the summer we performed some extensive research, released today. Details below:   Bank and FinTech Execs Report Strengthening Customer and Employee Relationships Due to COVID-19 Survey finds most predict big changes to the industry and that work from home is here to stay. London, …

Things we’re reading today include … TSB customers’ anger at online banking issues Fines for anti-money laundering failures rise as companies repeat mistakes Western Union chief explores acquisitions Norway’s central bank accused of breaking law over oil fund appointment UK consumer lending will plummet during …

I keep thinking I should give this up, but people keep encouraging me to continue so I will … for the moment. This week’s challenge was given to me by Brian Caplen, Editor-in-Chief of The Banker magazine, a sister publication of The Financial Times and hugely serious and …

Things we’re reading today include … Banking post lockdown: visiting branches, getting cash, how to contact your bank and more Monzo? I’d rather invest my tuppence in the bank A tale of two banks: Monzo vs Starling Three-month wait for bank appointment about coronavirus loan …

The main blog headlines are … The world after #coronavirus During this lockdown, it’s easy to get a bit down. The constant news of deaths and corona cases; the arguments between liberals and conservatives; the debate over whether the government acted early enough, fast enough, …

During this lockdown, it’s easy to get a bit down. The constant news of deaths and corona cases; the arguments between liberals and conservatives; the debate over whether the government acted early enough, fast enough, good enough; the rage over those breaking the rules and …

Things we’re reading today include … Why European banks expect fewer bad loans than American rivals Bank of England boss Bailey backs end of furlough scheme High-cost lenders using ‘exotic holidays’ to encourage debt Why stock markets are defying a shrinking economy Will Covid make …

I’m always ready to see both sides of the fence. In fact, I would rather see both sides of the fence than just my side. My side is biased and tainted by my senses and inputs. I realised that recently when I blogged about Hong …

Things we’re reading today include … UK start-ups face £15bn funding shortfall The UK’s private debt crisis will make this recession so much worse | Christine Berry Wells Fargo to cut consultancy spend after internal backlash Metro Bank office staff can work from home until …

I blogged in April that banking is nothing to do with relationships, it’s about secrets. It’s more than this though, it’s about trust. Can I trust you with my secrets? This came home to me as, since then, a few people pulled me up over …

Things we’re reading today include … Trump And His Company Under Investigation Over Reports Of Bank Fraud Bank of England to cut interest rates to zero in November Economic forecasts are too rosy. That can be costly Five surprising facts about inequality in the UK …

I was on a call the other day and Nick Ogden, serial entrepreneur, made the comment that the pandemic had been like a digital enema for the world. This town needs an enema! True. The digitalisation impact of coronavirus is unquantified for the future, but …

Things we’re reading today include … Google to offer co-branded accounts with eight US banks Difficult second decade ahead for Metro Bank Private banker to Trump and Jared Kushner under investigation by Deutsche Bank HSBC is biggest loser in never-ending US-China global power play | …

It seems my Karaoke Challenge is proving successful so far, with many readers asking me to cover a song they think would be funny with my quirky twist. Whilst I’m getting all of these requests, I’ll keep up my feeble attempts to entertain until I’m …

Things we’re reading today include … Bakery manager sacked for using own bank card to help elderly customers blocked from paying with cash Lloyds bank manager ‘sacked for helping customer open mail’ Monzo’s losses double as popular UK digital bank warns of pandemic uncertainty Canary …

The main blog headlines are … What’s the impact of coronavirus on FinTech? Someone asked me what the coronavirus pandemic means for the future of FinTech. I guess they thought that not much is happening and many firms will shutter and close. However, some may …

Someone asked me what the coronavirus pandemic means for the future of FinTech. I guess they thought that not much is happening and many firms will shutter and close. However, some may think that times are dull and boring, locked in at home and nothing …

Things we’re reading today include: Lloyds bank reports loss after setting aside £2.4bn Lloyds reviews use of office space amid homeworking trend Schroders takes crown of UK’s largest listed fund manager Bridgewater faces losses and a lawsuit Five key moments from the big tech grilling …

A great headline posted in The Financial Times the other day:  When the banks closed in Wuhan, nobody cared The Financial Times article makes clear how advanced the Chinese economy is today. For several months this year, banks across Hubei province, an area home to …

Things we’re reading today include … Barclays: We want our people back in the office FCA raps brokers over ‘inappropriate’ use of clients’ assets Barclays profits plunge as it puts aside £1.6bn for Covid-19 defaults Federal Reserve warns of continuing need to protect US economy …

I’ve grown up in a period of strong political stability. I’ve been lucky. Many other people grew up in a period of strong political instability, with war and famine and economic starvation. I realise I’ve been lucky because I’m now looking at lockdown, China-US trade …

Things we’re reading today include … Man buys Lamborghini after getting nearly $4m in coronavirus loans, authorities say European banking needs a Big Bang TransferWise valued at $5bn in secondary share sale Will coronavirus mean the demise of banknotes? | Howard Davies Google commits to …

I was having a chat with someone the other day and lamenting the loss of open travel. My job was reliant on travel, going to conferences worldwide as a keynote speaker. Locked up at home: (a) how am I going to generate keynotes at conferences …

Things we’re reading today include … Where the founders of Europe’s top 10 digital banks began their careers Deutsche Bank’s pay predicament is a bad omen for rivals. Tumble weeds in finance hubs Not for the faint of heart, is it time to buy bank …

One of my readers enjoyed my Karaoke so much that he challenged me to attempt Jaja Ding Dong.  If you don’t know the song, it’s the amazing #singalongaferrell in the hilarious film Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga. If you haven’t seen this …

Things we’re reading today include … Goldman Sachs’ guide to the best and worst perfoming banks in Q2 Hong Kong launches share index of technology giants NatWest customers say accounts were closed after they applied for coronavirus loans The Guardian view on a wealth tax: …

The main blog headlines are … The FinTech Karaoke Challenge OK, OK, OK.  I know that some of my friends have been doing FinTech and Banking songs for a while, and I’ve avoided it. I’ve also avoided doing much video, as I don’t like seeing …

I stumbled across a great article about Brazilian neobanks the other day. Bearing in mind that Nubank is the most successful neobank in the world, with 25 million users at the start of June. As a result, when I saw a great article about banks …