Natwest boss becomes latest City figure caught in AI social media scam July 3, 2026 The boss of Natwest has become the latest City figure to be depicted in an AI scam across social media. Paul Thwaite – the chief executive of the FTSE 100 bank – was posted on X alongside journalist Emily Maitlis in a deepfake picture attempting to create a BBC radio interview. The picture was shared [...]
Will AI trigger the end of net neutrality? July 2, 2026 Since its inception, the internet has worked for one fundamental reason: net neutrality. This is the principle that internet carriers – broadband and mobile providers – must treat traffic equally, regardless of where it comes from. They cannot discriminate. This idea, noble in its intentions, was what spurred the enormous growth of internet services over [...]
UK banks’ digital ID bid is a game of optics – and the odds are not in their favour July 1, 2026 A digital ID row has dominated headlines in the last year, and banks are set to join the row. In this week’s column, Samuel Norman takes a look at what they might be in for. Britain’s banks have voluntarily thrown themselves into one of the most toxic culture wars of the decade. Few subjects evoke [...]
BT tops FTSE 100 after finding new home for international business with Verizon joint venture June 29, 2026 BT unveiled a new home for its international operations on Monday, in a move the £19.5bn firm called a “milestone”, which sent its shares to the top of the FTSE 100. A joint venture with Verizon of the US will target multinational customers and help the former monopoly concentrate on its domestic market. BT will [...]
Wise profit slides as costs racks up from US listing June 26, 2026 Money transfer firm Wise saw its profit fall in its latest financial year as costs related to its new primary listing on Wall Street helped take a chunk out of the company’s bottom line. The UK fintech’s profit before tax slid eight per cent to $660m (£500m) – down from $717.5m – in its first [...]
As it happened: Stocks tumble after Apple rattles global markets; UK food exports hit by US tariffs June 26, 2026 Welcome back to the Morning Wire liveblog. Markets are digesting fresh inflationary fears driven by Apple’s price hike as well as renewed threats over the safety of the Strait of Hormuz this morning after a projectile struck a vessel off the coast of Oman. Asian equity markets took a tumble overnight as price increases announced [...]
Barclays and Lloyds join banking sector plan for digital ID June 25, 2026 Barclays and Lloyds are among a group of top UK lenders working on a plan that would see customers able to use digital identification tools in their banking app. The collective of banks – which also includes HSBC, Nationwide, Natwest and Santander – are working with industry body UK Finance on a process where users’ [...]
Luminance’s boss: Why building our own AI beats ‘rented intelligence’ June 25, 2026 Amid a surge of legal AI tech firms coming to market, concerns are emerging about ‘rented intelligence,’ with some companies criticised for simply putting their logos on technology developed by others. In contrast, Luminance insists it is focused on the bigger picture, betting its future on AI models it has built in-house. Speaking to City [...]
‘Streets ahead’ – London aims to wear the legal AI crown June 25, 2026 New York may have the money, but London is trying to claim the ‘global capital of legal AI’ crown, writes Maria Ward-Brennan. In the midst of a brutal transatlantic talent war, where US firms are driving salaries through the roof and aggressively poaching top talent across the City, London has quietly secured a major strategic [...]
Pigment boss: ‘We’re replacing legacy players at the speed of light’ June 24, 2026 Eléonore Crespo, co-founder and chief executive of Pigment, said the company is replacing legacy enterprise software providers “at the speed of light”, as demand for AI-native business planning accelerates across the private sector. The Paris-headquartered platform, which helps companies including Unilever, Siemens, Anthropic and Coca-Cola run financial planning and performance management, is approaching $100m (£75m) [...]