Chris Skinner's blog

Shaping the future of finance

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How the media changes reality: banks liars and bullies

In an eight-page document to the Chief Executives of UK Banks released on Friday, the UK’s Financial Services Authority (FSA) accused the UK Banking industry of being "unfair". The document concludes an investigation into unauthorised overdraft charging complaints procedures.  In softening the blow with an opening "we did see evidence of firms taking steps to…

HSBC’s view from the top

I recently went to a conference in the HSBC tower at Canary Wharf.  On entering the building, there’s  a few things that strike me. First, the lovely pair of lions as you walk up to the building.  The lions are feng shui good fortune symbols that you’ll find outside most of HSBC’s global offices, and…

HSBC’s view from the top

I recently went to a conference in the HSBC tower at Canary Wharf.  On entering the building, there’s  a few things that strike me. First, the lovely pair of lions as you walk up to the building.  The lions are feng shui good fortune symbols that you’ll find outside most of HSBC’s global offices, and…

Bankers battle over dress code

I recently encountered an interesting conversation between two CIOs of two major European banks.  I won’t say anything more than one was a major French bank and the other a major Dutch bank who both share the same building. The first and second floor are occupied by the I.T. operations of the major French bank,…

Government scraps identity cards

The government intends to scrap the controversial national identity card program. Instead, the Home Office is working with NATO and the US Department of Homeland Security to create a globally recognised standard for identity management using the latest chip designs from VeriChip Corporation. The program has been given the internal codename "C-square" – which stands…

Government scraps identity cards

The government intends to scrap the controversial national identity card program. Instead, the Home Office is working with NATO and the US Department of Homeland Security to create a globally recognised standard for identity management using the latest chip designs from VeriChip Corporation. The program has been given the internal codename "C-square" – which stands…

Get global, get specialized or get out

IBM sent me a report this morning called “Get global. Get specialized. Or get out. Unexpected lessons in global financial markets.” The report’s theme is that the financial markets will enjoy dramatic growth except that financial firms do not have strategies to capitalize on this growth because they lack global integration. The study was performed…