Closing summary: Starling fined £29m; oil prices in spotlight amid Middle East crisis
Starling Bank has been fined £29m by the City watchdog for “shockingly lax” financial crime controls which “left the financial system wide open to criminals and those subject to sanctions”.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said the challenger bank had grown quickly but “measures to tackle financial crime did not keep pace with its growth”.
Starling, a UK-based online bank founded in 2014 by entrepreneur Anne Boden, grew rapidly, from 43,000 customers in 2017 to 3.6 million in 2023.
Banks are required by law to conduct rigorous checks on new customers to prevent fraud and money laundering.
Starling said it “regrets and apologises” for its failings, and has paid the fine as full and final settlement. It added that it had rescreened transactions and reviewed its customer accounts in depth, and introduced additional safeguards.
In other business news today:
Oil prices rose for the second day in a row after Iran’s missile attack on Israel threatened to escalate the Middle East crisis.
A long-serving former Harrods executive has stepped back from plans to become boss of department store Fenwick chain this month amid controversy about the activities of the late owner of the Knightsbridge department store, Mohamed Al Fayed.
Rail passengers using London’s Euston station are being put in danger from high levels of overcrowding, a transport watchdog has warned.
JD Sports’ UK business has been hit by falling sales after disruption in the Red Sea stalled deliveries and the cold, wet spring reduced demand for camping kit and clothing.
Tesla missed car delivery expectations, giving it a harder task to beat last year’s numbers.
The Saudi energy minister warned other members of the Opec+ oil cartel that they should comply with production cuts to avoid prices dropping as low as $50 per barrel.
You can continue to follow our live coverage from around the world:
In our coverage of the Middle East crisis, Israel and Hezbollah fighters clash on the ground in Lebanon after Israel sends in more troops
In the US, reaction to the Vance-Walz debate
In the UK, Tory leadership rivals make pitch to members at party conference
Thank you for reading today, and please do join us tomorrow bright and early for more of the same. JJ
Wall Street stock market indices have dipped at the opening bell in New York, as investors try to work out what will happen next in the Middle East crisis.
Here are the opening snaps via Reuters:
S&P 500 DOWN 13.44 POINTS, OR 0.24%, AT 5,695.31
NASDAQ DOWN 45.08 POINTS, OR 0.25%, AT 17,865.28
DOW JONES DOWN 23.96 POINTS, OR 0.06%, AT 42,133.01
