AUTHOR
Simon Nixon
Universal Credit comes good
UK Economy
Universal Credit comes good
The government’s benefit reforms have been plagued with disasters since their introduction in 2013. The Covid-19 crisis, however, has revealed a posit…
21 Sep 2020
Osborne could still be a useful asset for the Tories
People
Osborne could still be a useful asset for the Tories
The shadow chancellor has looked out of his depth for much of the credit crunch. But getting rid of him won't resolve the Tories' main dilemma: how to…
21 Nov 2008
Economic Jurassic Park: four dinosaurs that could well come back to life
Economy
Economic Jurassic Park: four dinosaurs that could well come back to life
Ideas thought to have been consigned to history are now being presented by politicians as the answer to the world's problems. Here, Simon Nixon picks …
14 Nov 2008
Hedge funds must adapt or die
Stockmarkets
Hedge funds must adapt or die
The hedge fund industry is heading for an almighty shake-out, says Simon Nixon. At least one third look set to disappear - and the rest must adapt to …
7 Nov 2008
Brown is right to want to stop repossessions - but what can he do?
Property
Brown is right to want to stop repossessions - but what can he do?
Simon Nixon has sympathy with Gordon Brown's attempts to stop newly-nationalised banks from repossessing people's homes. But the sooner house prices f…
31 Oct 2008
Don't blame the media for fuelling the crisis
People
Don't blame the media for fuelling the crisis
It seems the media is fast becoming public enemy number one. But far from exaggerating the risks, says Simon Nixon, most journalists are actually down…
24 Oct 2008
The bail-out will have an adverse effect on banks' liberty
Economy
The bail-out will have an adverse effect on banks' liberty
It's hard to quibble with the UK's bank bail-out, says Simon Nixon. The plan is pretty smart. But we must take with a pinch of salt Alistair Darling's…
17 Oct 2008
Regulators don't need more power, they should use the ones they've got
Economy
Regulators don't need more power, they should use the ones they've got
The City is already heavily enough regulated. The FSA's problem isn't lack of powers, says Simon Nixon, but its failure to use the powers it already h…
26 Sep 2008
It's hard to sympathise with City job losses, but they are bad news for us all
Economy
It's hard to sympathise with City job losses, but they are bad news for us all
Simon Nixon says we should have more compassion for soon-to-be-bankrupt City bankers who've lost their bonuses and risk having to flog off their yacht…
19 Sep 2008
The impact of the last Great Depression? It's still too early to tell
Economy
The impact of the last Great Depression? It's still too early to tell
Many of the challenges we're facing today can be traced back to the 1930s and the responses to the Great Depression, says Simon Nixon. But will today'…
12 Sep 2008
Things are bright in asset management, despite darkening times for investors
Funds
Things are bright in asset management, despite darkening times for investors
Now is the time of year when investors consider changes to their portfolios. This year, that task is more difficult than ever. The credit crunch did n…
5 Sep 2008
Banks and government will search in vain to cure the City's ills
Economy
Banks and government will search in vain to cure the City's ills
The government is desperately hunting for the magic bullet to end the credit crisis, says Simon Nixon, Meanwhile, major job cuts are inevitable in the…
29 Aug 2008
Four lessons from Russia – and what the West must do to hobble the bear
Economy
Four lessons from Russia – and what the West must do to hobble the bear
Despite many people giving Russia the benefit of the doubt when deciding where to put their money, Simon Nixon remains cautious about investing in Rus…
15 Aug 2008
Darling’s footling reform is so pathetic I don’t know whether to laugh or cry
Economy
Darling’s footling reform is so pathetic I don’t know whether to laugh or cry
Simon Nixon is not impressed with the Chancellor's desperate bid to reboot the housing market and urges him to stop meddling.
8 Aug 2008
The credit crunch is far from over. Here are the five reasons why
Economy
The credit crunch is far from over. Here are the five reasons why
Simon Nixon doesn’t believe that the credit crunch is anywhere near over after mid-July's stock market rally. Here, he explains why.
1 Aug 2008
Why the real scandal over our public finances is hidden under the carpet
Economy
Why the real scandal over our public finances is hidden under the carpet
The outrageous thing about the UK's public finances, says Simon Nixon, is how it has kept some enormous liabilities out of the official figures: PFI, …
25 Jul 2008
We need a strong opposition. What we’ve got is half-baked and socialistic
Economy
We need a strong opposition. What we’ve got is half-baked and socialistic
As governments bail-out failed banks, the financial world has realised that politics is not irrelevant. So their economic plans are now coming under c…
18 Jul 2008
Are things really as bad as they seem for British banks?
Economy
Are things really as bad as they seem for British banks?
Desperate for capital and with share prices in free-fall, the UK banking sector is clearly in a bad way. But some people think banks are a good, cheap…
11 Jul 2008
From good to bad to worse: three ways the credit crunch could end
Economy
From good to bad to worse: three ways the credit crunch could end
Trying to call the outcome of the credit crunch is a fool's errand, says Simon Nixon. We all hope for a shallow downturn; the truth is it could end in…
4 Jul 2008
Zimbabwe may be a basket case, but other sub-Saharan countries are faring better
Economy
Zimbabwe may be a basket case, but other sub-Saharan countries are faring better
Zimbabwe may have been brought to ruin under Mugabe, but many other countries in the region have achieved a remarkable transformation over the past de…
27 Jun 2008
FSA’s new rules are short of the mark – and will do more harm than good
Stockmarkets
FSA’s new rules are short of the mark – and will do more harm than good
The FSA's new regulations on short-selling mean disclosure rules are far more onerous for shorts than longs. And that amounts to manipulation of the m…
20 Jun 2008
The Fed talks tough. But talk is cheap
Economy
The Fed talks tough. But talk is cheap
Ben Bernanke has been more upbeat on the US economy recently, downplaying a recession and hinting at inflation-busting rate-hikes. But while it may su…
16 Jun 2008
Thought the worst was over for the credit crunch? Think again…
Economy
Thought the worst was over for the credit crunch? Think again…
The aftershocks of Bradford and Bingley's botched rights issue will shake the rest of the UK banking sector, the economy and the City's reputation, sa…
9 Jun 2008
The real threat to the UK comes not from the credit crunch, but Russia
Economy
The real threat to the UK comes not from the credit crunch, but Russia
Dirty Russian money threatens to undermine London's reputation, built on respect for the law and mutual trust. And Russia's dominance of the energy ma…
30 May 2008
Too many immigrants? Rubbish, soon we'll be begging them to come
Economy
Too many immigrants? Rubbish, soon we'll be begging them to come
With an ageing population, millions of Britons unwilling to work and thousands more emigrating every year, the last thing this country needs is fewer …
28 May 2008
There’s a word for the state we’re in: stagflation. But what can be done?
Economy
There’s a word for the state we’re in: stagflation. But what can be done?
It’s been fashionable over the last few years to joke that the UK has become a giant hedge fund. And we know what happens to them when investors lose …
19 May 2008
The Conservative party needs to get in touch with reality again
Economy
The Conservative party needs to get in touch with reality again
Britain needs a government that can take difficult decisions. But there’s not much in the Tory record over the last year to suggest they have grasped …
13 May 2008
Mervyn King was right about City bonuses – they’re at the heart of this financial crisis
Economy
Mervyn King was right about City bonuses – they’re at the heart of this financial crisis
It was good to see Mervyn King launching an attack on the City bonus culture. But reforming the City’s incentive structures won’t be easy, says Simon …
7 May 2008
UK bank shares look attractive, but any rally will prove short-lived
Economy
UK bank shares look attractive, but any rally will prove short-lived
Investors are hoping that the bad news is out of the way for the banks. But we are still in the very early stages of the credit crunch, and the long t…
29 Apr 2008
The bare-faced cheek of begging bankers at Gordon Brown’s breakfast
Economy
The bare-faced cheek of begging bankers at Gordon Brown’s breakfast
Gordon Brown’s recent breakfast with Britain’s top bankers to discuss the mortgage crisis was, by all accounts, a dispiriting affair, writes Simon Nix…
22 Apr 2008
Mega-banks should face up to the painful truth that small is beautiful
Economy
Mega-banks should face up to the painful truth that small is beautiful
The names that used to dominate the square mile have rolled up in successive waves of bank mergers into one of the giant bulge-bracket banks that domi…
16 Apr 2008
Bank stocks rally and the worst may be over – but don’t pop the champagne just yet
Economy
Bank stocks rally and the worst may be over – but don’t pop the champagne just yet
The euphoria that greeted the latest rally in bank stocks has led many in the City to start talking excitedly about whether the worst of the credit cr…
7 Apr 2008
Bankers have regulators over a barrel – but reform is in their own self-interest
Economy
Bankers have regulators over a barrel – but reform is in their own self-interest
The financial services industry has never had a reputation for saintliness. But its recent behaviour suggests that it is taking arrogance, cynicism an…
2 Apr 2008
Choose your hedge funds with care
Economy
Choose your hedge funds with care
Some have gone quietly whilst others have blown up in spectular style. And there are plenty of good reasons why more hedge funds are destined to go th…
25 Mar 2008
Whatever the Fed does, this crisis has a long way to run
Economy
Whatever the Fed does, this crisis has a long way to run
Should the Fed intervene or allow a crash? Simon Nixon unravels the City's goings-on and wonders where it will all end.
19 Mar 2008
Private equity is putting on a brave face, but its players are feeling the pain
Economy
Private equity is putting on a brave face, but its players are feeling the pain
Hanging out with the private-equity crowd at the SuperReturns conference is a surreal experience: everyone accepts that this year will be a stinker, b…
5 Mar 2008