Chief Executive of Pensions Regulator Won't Renew Contract

BREAKING: Lesley Titcomb, chief executive of the Pensions Regulator since 2015, has today announced she will not reapply to renew her contract in February next year.

— Josephine Cumbo (@JosephineCumbo) May 31, 2018

Poundland Skewers Thameslink's Shite Service

.@TLRailUK You’re ‘off the rails’ #TLFail #Proudland pic.twitter.com/rago9G1zmh

— Poundland (@Poundland) May 30, 2018

Kudos to Poundland for reminding people that companies can be well run and meet customers' expectations!

Italy's Fucked!

Political chaos in the euro zone's third-biggest economy won't be going away anytime soon, according to International Monetary Fund former chief economist Olivier Blanchard, who on Tuesday issued an ominous assessment of the country.

Panic roiled markets Tuesday as a political fight in Italy prompted one of its worst market sell-offs in years. Underlying investor fear was the prospect of Italy leaving the euro and others following suit, which Blanchard, now an economics professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, described as more of a psychological fear than a realistic threat.

The potential concern, rather, involves Italy's creditors, who would have to "move carefully," the economist told CNBC's Joumanna Bercetche in Paris. The rest of Europe may avoid a domino effect, but Italy looks to remain mired in a quagmire.

"I suspect in this case the EU will do whatever is needed to prevent contagion, so I'm not terribly worried about contagion," Blanchard said. "I'm very worried about Italy. Not worried about the rest of Europe. It will be tough, but the rest of Europe, the rest of (the) euro will be OK."

My sympathies to the good people of Italy, the EU will crush them. As per Günther Hermann Oettinger (European Commissioner for Budget and Human Resources):

"Markets will teach Italy to vote for the right thing". 

Shock Horror: Bitcoin Holders Learn That Bitcoin Can Go Down As Well As Up

Bitcoin Closing on Long-Term Bear Indicator Not Seen Since 2014....
...as it slides below 8K, over 60% from its peak https://t.co/CTT9EgpmOC

— Nouriel Roubini (@Nouriel) May 23, 2018

Carillion's Board Really Was Shite!

Carillion's board presided over a "rotten corporate culture" and was culpable for its "costly collapse", two committees of MPs have concluded.

The MPs also called for a potential break-up of the big four audit firms, after they "waved through" the indebted construction firm's accounts.

Broadbent's Mid Life Crisis

Ben Broadbent, The Bank of England's deputy governor, put the cat among the pigeons by saying the UK economy is entering a "menopausal" era.

Quite what that means in terms of economic performance I have no idea.

However, it seems that Broadbent was trying to imply that the economy was past its prime. Which of course, in terms of economics, is an absurdity as economies fluctuate like the bends in a river.

Anyhoo, economics aside, the comments understandably sparked a backlash from women on Twitter who objected to his use of the phrase.

Nikki Garnett, a blogger, said:

"How dare you Ben Broadbent? 

Menopausal women have not lost their potency, in fact they are just reaching it... as I suspect you will find out in reactions to your anachronistic comment."

Bankers and economists should stick to the numbers and avoid mixing their medical metaphors.

Wages Outstripping Inflation

Wages in UK rising faster than inflation for first time in more than a year, figures show https://t.co/KdsD4hDlem

— BBC Breaking News (@BBCBreaking) May 15, 2018

CEO of Barclays Fined £642K By Regulators

Regulators have fined Barclays CEO James Staley £642,430 for failures in his handling of a whistelblower at Barclays.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Prudential Regulation Authority said he had "failed to act with due skill, care and diligence in the way he acted in response to an anonymous letter received by Barclays in June 2016".

Barclays must also now report annually to the regulators detailing how it handles whistleblowing, with "personal attestations" required from those responsible for the relevant systems and controls.

FYI:

October 2015 Barclays said Staley's annual pay will consist of a salary of 1.2 million pounds, a role-based “allowance” of 1.15 million pounds in shares, a cash allowance of up to 400,000 pounds and up to 5.5 million pounds in annual bonus.

Interest Rates Unchanged

Breaking: @BankofEngland leaves interest rates on hold at 0.5%.
- 7-2 vote by the MPC. Saunders & McCafferty voted for 0.75% rates
- BoE cuts 2018 growth forecast from 1.8% to 1.4%
- Signals potential rate hikes later this year

— Ed Conway (@EdConwaySky) May 10, 2018

TSB Is Still Fucked - Live Updates

TSB customers today: still can't get app or online banking...3 hours on phone...endless loop of automated voices...text saying over my limit when I'm not...can't access business account...can't sort out fraudulent transactions

— Simon Gompertz (@gompertz) May 9, 2018

Live updates here.

Mike Coupe (CEO of Sainsbury's) Nails It! - #Sasda

Watch Sainsbury's CEO sing "we're in the money" while waiting to talk about the £12 billion merger with Asda - he's since apologised for his "unguarded moment" https://t.co/Kuaowz0q1u pic.twitter.com/jYMngcahS2

— ITV News (@itvnews) April 30, 2018