Charles Randell had no idea what was about to unfold as he made his way to Downing Street in September 2007. Days earlier, the then chancellor Alistair Darling had taken drastic measures, guaranteeing deposits at Northern Rock in an effort to halt Britain’s first bank run in 140 years.
The future Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) chair – a partner at “magic circle” law firm Slaughter and May at the time – had followed the news closely, but admits: “I had no idea that this was the beginning of a huge snowball that would lead to a much bigger set of problems – and a very long-running assignment.”
