UK Newspaper Archive (July 2020-Present)

The Financial Times says a London-based digital banking start-up, Revolut, has become the UK’s most valuable private tech company ever after raising $800m (£578m) in a funding round.

There are growing calls for Monday to be a bank holiday if England win the Euro 2020 final against Italy at Wembley on Sunday, says the Daily Mirror.

The Financial Times leads on the news that the Bank of England raised its expectations for inflation, but kept interest rates fixed.

Commodities trader Trafigura warned Credit Suisse last year that the bank’s supply-chain finance funds appeared to contain a suspicious invoice, the Financial Times reports.

The Bank of England expects the UK economy to grow by 7.25% this year – a much stronger recovery from the pandemic – built on the back of higher consumer spending, writes the Financial Times.

David Cameron “repeatedly pushed” the Bank of England and the Treasury to “risk up to £20bn in taxpayer cash to help Greensill Capital”, The Guardian reports.

The Financial Times says China’s central bank has asked lenders to rein in credit supply, following concerns that a surge of lending to help the country recover from the coronavirus pandemic could cause financial instability.

The Sunday Times claims that a “scandal-hit banker” enriched himself through a loans scheme after then-PM David Cameron gave him special access to Whitehall departments and agencies.

The head of the Bank of England has said he is concerned inflation will rise as the UK recovers from the pandemic, the Financial Times reports.

The Financial Times reports that Europe’s top banking regulator has asked the continent’s lenders for details of their exposure to stricken Greensill Capital and its key client GFG Alliance.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak will offer individual grants of up to £18,000 as part of a £5bn rescue scheme to prevent bankruptcies, The Observer reports.

There’s optimism over the UK’s economic future in the Daily Mail, based on comments from the Bank of England’s chief economist. 

The Daily Telegraph reports on a warning from Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey that the EU is threatening to make life more difficult for UK banks.

The ex-head of the European Central Bank, Mario Draghi, has accepted a request to form a national unity government in Italy, the Financial Times reports.

The Financial Times says companies have raised $400bn (£291bn) in the first three weeks of 2021, as stimulus packages from governments and central banks “cascade across capital markets”.

The Financial Times reports that investment banks across the world generated a record $124.5bn (£92.2bn) in fees this year as companies raced to raise money in order to survive the coronavirus pandemic.

The Financial Times says three of the world’s top central bankers have predicted the breakthrough on a coronavirus vaccine would lift the uncertainty weighing on the global economy.

Leading the Daily Express is a story about the “end of free banking” moving closer as HSBC warns of the possible introduction of monthly account charges.

The Financial Times leads with two of the biggest banks – HSBC and Santander – declaring the worst of the economic damage from COVID-19 is behind them. 

‘Banks act to stifle home loan boom’ is the headline on the Financial Times, referring to attempts to ease the rush of buyers taking advantage of the stamp duty holiday.

The Financial Times reports on a boost for HSBC’s share price after a Chinese investor increased its stake in the bank.