New Financial LLP’s Post

The future of pensions regulation in the UK: we're looking forward to hosting an in-person roundtable next week with Nausicaa Delfas, chief executive of The Pensions Regulator, to discuss some of the key themes around this vital topic, including: - The political and policy debate around UK pensions - The structure and potential consolidation of DB and DC pensions - The value for money framework in UK pensions - The debate around asset allocation - Disclosure requirements for UK pensions As usual, we'll produce an anonymised thematic 10 point summary of the discussion and circulate it to our member firms and government network. This event is part of our programme of 40+ briefings and events a year across our diversity and capital markets programme.

What next for EU capital markets? We’re looking forward to hosting an event and panel discussion next week on Tuesday 16 April to discuss the future of EU capital markets at the residence of the Belgian Ambassador to the UK. The event is organised in conjunction with Belgium’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union, and is taking place at a critical juncture for EU capital markets - with elections to the European Parliament in a few months and a new European Commission term starting later this year. Strengthening the capital markets union is a priority of the Belgian Presidency. This event will focus on the progress made in EU capital markets over the past five years and look at some of the challenges and opportunities ahead. It will include a presentation of ‘A renewed vision for EU capital markets’, the latest report by New Financial, followed by a discussion with panellists including: - Jan De Bondt, executive in residence at Vlerick Business School - Karel Lanoo, chief executive of the Centre for European Policy Studies - Anne Marie Verstraeten, Vice chair – UK, BNP Paribas If you work in or around European capital markets in policy, government, regulation or as a market participant and would be interested in attending this event, please get in touch via events@newfinancial.org

We were delighted to welcome Bim Afolami MP, Economic Secretary to the Treasury, to meet with New Financial LLP members last week and discuss the future of capital markets and the City of London. In a wide-ranging discussion hosted by our managing director William Wright, our members exchanged views with the City Minister on the progress made so far in reforming UK capital markets; the priorities for the government in the coming year; and the industry’s main priorities and concerns around the UK reform process. A key point that stood out was the role that the UK’s banking and finance sector can play in supporting economic growth, innovation, and jobs. For more details of our full event programme visit https://lnkd.in/e9qtnJ6S or email us at events@newfinancial.org

It looks like 2024 is going to be another busy year for UK and EU capital markets policy. We're looking forward to hosting a virtual discussion on the industry perspective on 'A big year for European capital markets' on Monday 29th January at 14.00hrs UK time. Across Europe there are lots of reforms already underway, limited time to deliver them despite a growing political commitment to do so, and elections looming in the UK, Europe, and the US - all against the backdrop of a challenging macro-economic and geopolitical environment. Thank you to our panel of industry experts who will be joining us to discuss what this means for capital markets: - Lauren Anderson, head of government relations – EMEA, JP Morgan - Nick Dutton, chief regulatory officer – Europe, Cboe Global Markets - Elisabeth Ottawa, head of public policy – Europe, Schroders Likely topics include: - The last few months of the current EU legislative programme - The UK reform programme (Edinburgh Reforms, Mansion House reforms, etc) - The impact of the European elections and a new European Commission (plus elections in the UK and US, and eight EU member states…) - CMU 3.0 – the future of capital markets union - Rethinking ESG and sustainable finance? - The prospects for closer cooperation between the UK and EU If you work in government, regulation or the capital markets industry and would be interested in joining us, please email us on events@newfinancial.org for more information

This morning, we are delighted to be hosting the launch of New Financial LLP’s report surveying HM Treasury Women in Finance Charter signatories about the impact of the Charter. As well as hearing from HM Treasury and our fantastic Women in Finance Champion Amanda Blanc, we will also feature a panel discussion with the Irish and Luxembourg Women in Finance Charters. We will learn more about these two new Charters, discuss similarities and differences between their approaches, and how they have been influenced by the UK Charter. We will hear from: - Alanna Barber, Deputy Director, Banking and Credit at HM Treasury - Amanda Blanc, Group CEO of Aviva and the Government Women in Finance Champion - Helen Russell, Head of Social Research Division, Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) representing the Irish Charter - Tom Théobald, Director for the development of the financial centre, Ministry of Finance, Luxembourg For more information about this event and the Charter, or to request a copy of the report please contact info@newfinancial.org   With sincere thanks to our sponsors Aviva, Santander UK, LSEG (London Stock Exchange Group) and City of London Corporation for their commitment to gender diversity and sponsorship of this ground-breaking work. #womeninfinance #equality #genderequality #diversity #diversityandinclusion #financialservices #talent #change

Widening retail participation in equity markets - in the debate on the reform of UK and European pensions, capital markets, and investment, a big part of the potential solution is often overlooked: retail investors. While investing is easier than ever before, retail engagement in equity markets in the UK and most of Europe has fallen over the past few decades. In this report, produced in partnership with Euroclear and PrimaryBid, we measure the levels of retail participation and how it has changed ; assess the benefits of retail participation to individuals, companies, and the wider economy; and make 12 recommendations to increase retail investor engagement. The report focuses on direct ownership of shares, but many of the themes and recommendations in this report are immediately relevant to indirect investments through investment funds and pensions. The highlights include: >>> The value of retail participation: widening retail participation presents a big opportunity for individuals to improve their long-term financial wellbeing, for individuals to connect with the economy, and for the financial services industry to reconnect with millions of households. >>> The decline in retail participation: the proportion of UK households that directly own stocks and shares has halved since 2004 from 22% to 11%. Over the same period, the share of the UK stock market owned by UK households (directly or indirectly through pensions and investment funds) has fallen from 39% to just 16%. >>> How the UK compares in retail participation: a far higher proportion of households in Sweden (22%), Australia (21%) and the US (16%) directly own stocks and shares than in the UK (11%). >>> The growth potential: if households in the UK invested a quarter of their financial assets in equities and funds (instead of just 15%) it would unlock an extra £740bn of capital, and if households in the EU increased their asset allocation to equities by just five percentage points it would unlock an extra €1.8tn that could support investment, innovation, jobs, and growth. >>> A window of opportunity: there are a few essential building blocks that can help reconnect individuals with the capital markets. Using technology to make investing user-friendly, providing the right incentives, and removing structural and regulatory barriers would enable more individuals to be more confident and more engaged with their money. This may seem like a distraction at a time when millions of people are struggling with a cost-of-living crisis, but this report argues that in the long-term wider retail participation in equity markets would have a positive impact for millions of individuals and for the wider economy. Now is the time to start thinking about removing barriers, improving incentives, and raising levels of financial literacy. If you would like to read a full copy of the report, send us a message on LinkedIn or email us at info@newfinancial.org

A call to action in EU capital markets: we’re looking forward to launching our annual benchmarking report on the size, depth, and growth potential of EU capital markets on Thursday 21 September. And we’re looking forward to discussing how to inject a new sense of urgency into EU capital markets with our distinguished speakers at the event: - John Berrigan, director general of DG FISMA at the European Commission - Isabel Benjumea MEP, member of the ECON Committee in the European Parliament - Paschal Donohoe, president of the Eurogroup of finance ministers - Christian Sewing, chief executive of Deutsche Bank The main theme of this year’s report, which we’re publishing in partnership with Deutsche Bank, is ‘A new sense of urgency’ in EU capital markets. It boils the debate down to three simple questions: 1) What are the big social and economic challenges that we need EU capital markets to help address (such as financing the transition to net zero, financing innovation at scale, and supporting an ageing population)? 2) Are EU capital markets in their current form in a position to address these challenges? (spiler alert: in most cases, the answer is 'no' or 'not yet') 3) And if the answer to that question is ‘no’ what are the big levers that the EU and member states can pull to change this? If you work in and around European capital markets in policy, government, regulation or as a market participant and are interested in receiving a copy of the report or attending the online launch, get in touch via events@newfinancial.org

Our recent event discussion reflected on our Accelerating Black Inclusion research, now two years on. We reconvened a panel of contributors and advisors to the original research to discuss what progress had been made for the Black inclusion agenda, particularly against the five key action areas highlighted in our research: data, sponsorship, role models, confident conversations on race, and transparency on career progression. With more than 100 attendees live online the event included an animated Q&A with the panel: >>> Pierre Davis, General Counsel, S&P Global Commodity Insights & Mobility >>> Movell Dash (MAPM), Founder and Director, Modas Personal Development and adviser to New Financial’s research >>> Therese Chambers, Executive Director of Enforcement & Market Oversight, Financial Conduct Authority Overall, the panel agreed that progress had been made on the Black Inclusion agenda, particularly around data collection, but that there was a long road ahead. 2020 was a watershed moment, and many felt that impactful change was coming. However, we now have a better understanding of quite how hard (and at times painful) it is to make sustainable change. Attendees included leaders and aspiring leaders, diversity leads/champions or network representatives, DEI and HR professionals, anyone responsible/ accountable/ with a keen interest in DEI from business-facing roles, and anyone with an interest/focus on Black/ethnic minority inclusion specifically.   Our Accelerating Black Inclusion report was supported by lead sponsors Columbia Threadneedle Investments EMEA APAC and S&P Global, as well as brand sponsors DWS Group, Fidelity International, LSEG (London Stock Exchange Group), Morgan Stanley and Schroders and focused on the progression of Black colleagues into leadership positions in the UK financial services sector, in April 2021. The research set out to capture the experiences of Black leaders in response to the murder of George Floyd; their involvement with the Black inclusion agenda and how it had changed; and discuss their career trajectories, in order to both draw out any barriers they may have faced as they progressed to senior roles as well as inform organisational actions to better support Black colleagues.   Get in touch at info@newfinancial.org if you’re interested in our work on diversity or to read a copy of the research.   #diversity #inclusion #BAME #financialservices #financeandbanking #networkleads #change #opportunity #challengethinking #sustainablechange #leadership #diversityandinclusion #DEI #HR #inclusion #reflection #eventdiscussion #paneldiscussion

Tomorrow, New Financial LLP will host an in-person workshop that will focus on the value of retail participation in public equity markets, why it matters, and how the industry and government can leverage different aspects of technology to increase it. The discussion will directly inform a report that we are producing in partnership with Euroclear and PrimaryBid.   This will be a wide-ranging and open-ended discussion around some of the following themes:   >>> What is retail engagement and why does it matter? >>> What is the value of retail engagement in equity markets? >>> What are the potential risks around greater retail participation? >>> What are the main barriers (technological, regulatory, structural) to wider retail participation?   We expect participants will be a combination of those that work in government, public, and regulatory affairs who have a link to retail investment, retail specialists from the regulators, and senior people working at retail investment platforms.   #retailparticipation #capitalmarkets #bankingandfinance #publicequitymarkets #government #fintech #retailengagement #equitymarkets #regulatorybarriers #fintechbarriers #regulatoryaffairs #retailinvestmentplatforms #change