I just had a nice interview with EFMA (now Qorus) about the new book Digital for Good (available here), and thought I would share the interview here. Hope you like it. Qorus- It is not always easy to distinguish genuine leaders from clever communicators. How did you select the different …
Read More »A circular economy or degrowth?
I launched the new book Digital for Good in London the other day, and was joined by many friends in my network. The main highlight of the event was a panel discussion on where we are going with four panellists: Gail Bradbrook, Co-founder, Extinction Rebellion Gihan A.M. Hyde, Founder & …
Read More »A conversation between the angry banker and the activist consumer
For a few months now, I’ve given Gail Bradbrook, Co-Founder of Extinction Rebellion, a voice on this blog. The idea was to get understanding through talking. There have been many negative reactions, particularly this challenge from an angry banker. Since then, he has sent me several more negative emails, which I …
Read More »Digital transformation or purpose-driven banking?
I was reflecting on the fact that I’ve been talking about digital banking for a decade and a half. That’s a long time. I’d claim to have fathered the phrase Banking-as-a-Service back in the 2000’s, and yet only a third of banks understand the concept of BaaS today. "Only a third …
Read More »How can breaking bank windows be justified?
This latest blog from Dr Gail Bradbrook Co-Founder of Extinction Rebellion follows previous ones here and here. In it she responds further to this challenge from an angry anonymous banker… Dear Barclays Bank – Why I Believed You Wanted Me to Break Your Window Dear Anonymous Banker, Let’s address one key …
Read More »When a rebel meets a banker
Recently, Dr. Gail Bradbrook of Extinction Rebellion allowed The Finanser to publish a guest piece, which was generally well received. However, one letter stood out as a rebuttal. Gail determined to reply to this view, and so the dialogue carries on below… When economics and investments are led by our better …
Read More »Green finance is becoming a USP
I see five major groups squeezing the financial markets these days. The first one is obvious: it’s the FinTech start-up community, which is now valued as a third of all banking value. The second is clear too: it’s the Big Tech firms like Facebook and Amazon, who are launching their …
Read More »#COP26: ah well, what the hell?
Is it just me, or is the world a scary place at the moment? For most of my life, the world has been harmonising, working together to create global trade and destroy barriers. The fall of the Berlin Wall, the opening of China to world trade and the growth of …
Read More »HyCOPrite: Harvey Dent (Two-Face) strikes at #COP26
Mark Carney stood up at COP26, alongside Larry Fink (CEO of BlackRock) and Jane Fraser (CEO of Citigroup). Together they announced that the financial industry has pledged $130 trillion of assets to solve climate challenges. Woo-hoo! Thanks. Trouble is that it’s a lie. Larry Fink and Jane Fraser run two …
Read More »#COP26: We must use the world’s wealth to save Earth
Just in case you didn’t catch it, yesterday was the Finance Day at COP26. Rishi Sunak, the UK Chancellor, made a speech commiting the UK to be the first with a net-zero financial centre. Watch the speech: Or, if you prefer, here’s the transcript: Direct the world’s wealth to …
Read More »#COP26: Where’s the incentive?
The discussions of today’s COP26 interested me, as it’s all about the money. Today is the day that all of the world’s finance ministers meet to discuss their dedication to climate change. They had this before – in Paris six years ago they promised $100 billion to be given to …
Read More »COP26: Climate blah, blah, blah is all about the money, money, money
Kate Mackenzie, who writes with Bloomberg Green, published a fascinating long-read article on Phenomenal World the other day. I wanted to publish the whole thing, but instead took some key paragraphs to share here. Maybe this is why, as Greta Thunberg said it, most leaders talking about climate change is …
Read More »COP26: what’s going on?
The United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) takes place in Glasgow from 31 October – 12 November 2021. Triodos Bank have selected five key events they feel worth attending so, here they are: ‘Finance Day’ – Wednesday 3 November For the first time the COP has an official day of negotiations dedicated …
Read More »COP26: the launch of a Global Citizens Assembly
I’ve been involved in an exciting group that is sending a letter to Prince Charles and the World Economic Forum calling for a Global Citizens Assembly. It’s a call to action for COP26 and I was tempted to write all about it … but was beaten to the game by …
Read More »Is ethical banking a generational thing?
I’ve been writing and thinking a lot about ESG – Environment, Sustainability and Governance – as it’s the theme of my next book. Then up popped a headline: Prince Harry and Meghan are joining Ethic, a fintech asset manager in the fast-growing environmental, social and governance space, “My husband has …
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