Dean Forbes’ Post

As Rachel Reeves makes her first Treasury speech today, it is inferred that her statements regarding changes to the financial services sector will be delayed post summer. Prior to winning the election, Reeves showed her support for the financial services sector and touched upon Labour's plans to streamline the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA’s) regulatory handbook. We will be keeping a close eye on this development and the impact it will have to regulation and supervision across the markets. With her appreciation for the financial services sector as an engine for growth for the UK economy we are expecting the plans to have a strong focus on the use of AI in FS. #rachelreeves #fcaregulation #marketsupervision #compliancerecruitment

Today, I had the opportunity to attend an insightful keynote presentation by Lord Phillip Hammond, Former Chancellor of the Exchequer, titled "Forward Look - What the Future Looks Like for the UK Economy and Public Finances." Key Insights - prolonged slow growth, stagnant productivity and uncertainty from an upcoming general election. - the technology revolution, the 4th industrial revolution, will likely take decades rather than years to happen - governments should use tax to fund faster economic growth (economists view) - investing more UK pension funds within the UK could provide a significant economic boost. A big thanks to Lord Hammond and Accountex for such an enlightening presentation. What are your thoughts on these economic strategies? #Accountex #LordHammond #UKEconomy #EconomicGrowth #TechnologyRevolution

Today I’ve written to the new Chancellor, the Rt Hon Rachel Reeves, to congratulate her and her party on their stunning election victory. I’ve also emphasised that The Quoted Companies Alliance stands ready to work with the new government on kickstarting economic growth, the first of Labour’s five missions. The UK’s small and mid-sized quoted companies employ over 2.1m people and contribute at least £25bn in annual taxes. With the right support, they can grow even faster in number and value to become the blue chips of tomorrow. We are eager to see a fast resumption of the capital markets reform agenda. And we also suggest more action from the Financial Conduct Authority British Business Bank and Nest pensions that would support prosperity. My full letter is below: #growthagenda #growthcapital #midcaps #smallcaps #ukeconomy #investment #entrepreneur #cityoflondon #publicequity #wealthcreation https://lnkd.in/ewS9DUu3

Chancellor Rachel Reeves said "I believe that our financial services sector is the jewel in the crown of the UK economy, but we need to stay competitive in a very competitive landscape." She’s encouraging the FCA and PRA to review our regulations to ensure we are competitive and ramp up growth in the City of London. That would be nice, but unlikely to be a game changer and probably take time to have an effect. A quicker route to improved competitiveness would be remove stamp duty on UK equity purchases, provide tax benefits on UK dividends, raise the minimum contribution into auto enrolment, and require state funded pension schemes to have a greater weighting to the attractively valued & internationally competitive UK equity market. #investmentweek #ukequities #competitiveness #cityoflondon #alignmentofinterests For financial professionals only https://lnkd.in/eJfqPs5k

It’s not often Alma Strategic Communications has two clients receive a mention from the Chancellor in the Mansion House speech.   Last week Rachel Reeves reiterated her determination to ensure the UK retains its status as a global financial centre, making the UK markets more attractive by “increasing the flexibility for firms and founders of British high growth companies, so we have more British success stories like Raspberry Pi and Applied Nutrition plc IPO right here in the UK.”    We couldn’t agree more, and are proud to have supported so many entrepreneurial founders in taking their businesses onto the UK markets, Eben Upton, Thomas Ryder, CHENG-HAN JAN, Keith Neilson, Morgan Tillbrook, Hugh Osmond, Ami Daniel, Richard Jeffery, Gordon McArthur, Tommy Cook, Nick Jarmany, Richard Barton, Mitesh Dhanak to name but a few.   Driving the flow of funds back into UK equities will be key, and we hope to see the Chancellor further incentivise pension fund capital to invest in UK listed stocks.  https://lnkd.in/eP72EdBB  

Last year was a turbulent one for UK businesses as they grappled with the lingering effects of the pandemic and new challenges like the war in Ukraine, Brexit and the cost-of-living crisis.    With a general election on the horizon, the UK's economy is poised for a transformative shift. As political parties reveal their plans for the country, including how they intend to support businesses, business owners must stay well-informed about the potential benefits.     Learn more about how the upcoming election could affect you and your business and get in touch if you would like to join us on a TAB board to get the support you need to help manage your business through these changes. Give me a call on 07717313669 or email [email protected] to join our next TAB Taster board on 11th March DeskLodge in #Bristol.   #thealternativeboard #peerboard #advisoryboard #businesssupport 

What needs to happen next... With election distractions behind us, now is the time to return to focusing on how to achieve long-term #economicgrowth for the UK, an incredible country with far more potential than it’s given credit for! It is essential that we capture the productivity benefits of the UK’s intellectual property and ambition from industrial, technology, #sustainability, housing, natural capital and financial investors, among others. Of course, we look forward to hearing more detail on the new Labour government’s plans to enhance economic growth in the UK. There is an historic opportunity to inspire confidence in investors by removing uncertainty, and through providing a stable and coherent policy framework for growth…but importantly for the “long term”. There is a wealth of institutional and private capital that can be mobilised to support energy transition, sustainable infrastructure and growth companies, and we need a government that encourages entrepreneurialism with strategic private investment to achieve the UK’s ambitions in these areas. The UK is a leader in sustainability and has a strong ecosystem for growth capital - support and investment in both of these areas can generate good financial returns. Let’s get over the public versus private market obsession and leverage the UK’s strengths to refresh its capital culture. Here are key issues I would like to hear more about from the new government: ▪ A commitment not to raise income tax, plus additional incentives to promote reinvestment in entrepreneurial ventures and sustainable transition businesses ▪ Abolishing the sunset clause for Venture Capital Trusts (VCTs) altogether ▪ Incentivising investment from institutional investors to support high-growth companies ▪ Making it easier for investors to allocate capital on the basis of outcome rather than structure - forget public versus private and just create depth of liquidity for growth capital in general ▪ Reviving levelling up by facilitating pension fund investment in sustainable new infrastructure to support job creation and business expansion in regional areas ▪ Establishing mandatory regulatory frameworks to encourage more private and institutional capital investment in supporting nature recovery - investors want certainty and stability Labour has said it wants to create a fairer society and deliver on the UK’s #NetZero ambitions. Investors want to see conviction, policy clarity and consistency if they are to increase their allocations to these critical areas. Private capital will be instrumental in achieving the new government’s ambitions in a way that would be beneficial for investors, society, and the environment. Let’s hope the new government’s ambitions are supported by long-term clarity, consistency and delivery.

Sir Keir Stamer has launched his tenure as Prime Minister via the King’s Speech where he set out 40 bills that he hopes will foster national renewal, including economic growth. Economic is growth is essential in a time of already high overall taxation and government debt combined with continued demands on public services. However, it is traditionally one of the hardest things to engender. When Gordon Brown was the Chancellor he sought inspiration from the economic theory of endogenous growth models. These theories suggest that governments can do a lot to foster economic growth through investment, rather than it being akin to ‘manna from heaven’ (think Solow-Swan) which policy makers can do little to impact in the long-run and really only adjust their finances to balance the books. Prior to John Maynard Keynes, this was about all the UK Treasury attempted to do. A current area of focus for the current administration is boosting infrastructure, such as housing provision. The idea is that by reforming the planning system, they can help bring about 1.5 million homes in England over the next five years. This will not be easy as, amongst other things, there is a shortage of skills in the construction industry. Nevertheless, these aims are reflective of a shift in focus towards a more active role for the state. There is probably a stronger case for taking a more centralist approach than in the past. The last couple of decades have seen China grow rapidly whilst the state has continued to play a directive role, though working in tandem with market forces. That said, it seems more likely that the proposed increased active role of the state is a response to market failures rather than a principled belief that the state's involvement is necessary for bringing about increased wealth. #labour #economy #growth

The new Governments first 100 days in office can certainly be described as mixed at best - it’s summed up well by my fellow panellist at the London Investor Show , Craig Rickman in his post: https://lnkd.in/esYGWqs5 Part of the problem is that 118 days will have passed between the election and October 30 when Rt Hon Rachel Reeves will deliver her first budget. By contrast, it was 42 days for the Coalition in 2010, and 62 after Tony Blair stormed to victory in 1997. I agree with Annabel Denham in The Telegraph when she says: “The Chancellor has left a vacuum for fear to thrive…for economic think tanks and opposition parties to fill with frenzied speculation and dire warnings”. In The Times, Steve Rigby makes the case that: “The budget must take great care to balance provision of public services with the support that entrepreneurs need to continue building great British businesses…. …I am a great believer in fairness and there is no doubt that the tax system needs some rebalancing. The way in which this is undertaken is critical if we are to foster the entrepreneurial spirit that exists across Britain.” Agreed!!! https://lnkd.in/efGVamBV With economic #growth being the number #1 priority of Keir Starmer and the Government, the chief executives of Britain’s biggest banks have called on the chancellor to implement a step change in how we invest for the longer term. Again in The Times, they have 3 prongs to their proposals: 1. Create Conditions for Investor Confidence 2. Be smart and selective about public investment. 3. Use the financial services sector as a lever to achieve the step change in investment that the UK 🇬🇧 needs. https://lnkd.in/e5xZ5H5j Agreed! The speculation has been almost unprecedented and the #media and #socialmedia (myself included by writing these posts) can be accused of adding fuel to the fire…but healthy debate is the bedrock of a free society and it’s ok to disagree. As long as it’s done respectfully. Have a good week everyone! 🤔✌️🕊️👍

CATHERINE AUSTIN FITTS ⚫ Behind-the-scenes, multi-billion-dollar government contract wheeling and dealing... ✴ "This case study provides a detailed example of the financial kickback machinery that makes the process [operate]. It works something like this. A group of executives and investors start a company. Rather than build a business the old fashioned way, company profits are pumped up with government legislation, contracts, regulation, financing, subsidies and/or enforcement. This dramatically increases the value of the company’s financial equity. The company and its initial investors then sell their stock at a profit. Such profits replenish contributions made to the kind of politicians who can arrange such government benefits. Such profits also fund philanthropy to foundations and universities that have large endowments that invest [alongside] the investors. These tax-exempt organizations provide graduates to staff positions in the game, intellectual justification to attract popular support and photo opportunities which bestow legitimacy and social stature. Personnel cycle through the management and boards of business, government and academia, as the real economy declines — the environment deteriorates, productivity falls, income and infrastructure decline — and government deficits grow..." 🔻 Continue: ➡ https://lnkd.in/gAHYpXu9 #InvestorSyndicates #MoneyLaundering #CriminalSyndicates