Lloyd’s boss: City has ‘big few months ahead’ to ensure Square Mile vitality
Lloyd’s of London chief John Neal reckons the City has a “big few months ahead” to ensure the Square Mile retains its pre-pandemic vitality.
Speaking to Morning Wire this morning after a positive set of half-year results for the insurance marketplace, Neal said that though he recognises that “flexibility is critical” he also said there are a “truckload of customers and businesses that need us and we do need to be together.”
Lloyd’s has thrived for centuries on the strength of relationships formed in the ‘Room,’ the heart of the global underwriting market.
But both before and during the pandemic the marketplace made significant strides to ensure dealmaking could occur digitally, with the insurance market playing a key part in the immediate economic response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
However Neal feels there is a “lot of work to do” to “get that balance right.”
We have to collaborate, we have to get together, we have to develop the next generation of talent
John Neal, Lloyd’s of London
“Particularly after the August bank holiday in the UK and dare I say Labor Day in the US, we’ve got to step up.
“We’ve got a big few months ahead of us to make sure that the City comes back to life,” Neal continued, who joined Lloyd’s of London in 2018.
The capital’s transport network continues to recover, with TfL sources telling Morning Wire that ridership on Tuesday of this week was around 2.76m – around 71 per cent of pre-pandemic levels and up from 1.8m on the same day last year.
However rising energy bills are squeezing many of the City’s small businesses, which could see some considering shutting up shop on Mondays and Fridays when commuter levels remain low.