A Long Time In Finance

One of Britain's best known bond fund managers, and also founder of the "Bond Vigilante" blog, Jim Leaviss is leaving the City after 32 years to train as an art historian. Neil and Jonathan caught up with him to look back on his City career, the huge bull market in bonds of recent decades, and the threats that lie in store from international instability, political turmoil and deteriorating public finances across the Western world.  Presented by Neil Collins and Jonathan Ford.With Jim Leaviss.Produced and edited by Nick Hilton for Podot.In association with Briefcase.News Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When banks were found to have manipulated the Libor rate during the financial crisis, they paid a whopping $8bn in fines but only a few junior traders went to prison. In a joint episode with Law & Disorder podcast, we look at the recently appealed cases of Tom Hayes and Carlo Palumbo, and ask whether justice has been served.Presented by Jonathan Ford and Neil Collins.With Nicholas Mostyn and Helena Kennedy.Produced and edited by Nick Hilton for Podot.In association with Briefcase.News Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Geoff White, an investigative journalist and author renowned for his work on online crime, dives into the grim realities of digital money laundering. He reveals how crime has shifted from traditional burglary to sophisticated online schemes, driven by technology and cryptocurrency. The conversation uncovers the dark side of digital finance, exploring how criminals exploit online marketplaces and the challenges facing law enforcement. White also discusses the alarming intersection of money laundering with heinous crimes, revealing the urgent need for better oversight in the digital age.

How did housing in Britain go from somewhere to live to being everyone's favourite financial asset? In the second of our two part series, we look at housing policy since 1970; and ask whether there has ever been a coherent approach. Also is there a natural level of home ownership and should we be encouraging everyone to buy? With Cambridge University housing expert Peter Williams.Presented by Jonathan Ford and Neil Collins.With Peter Williams.Produced and edited by Nick Hilton for Podot.In association with Briefcase.News Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How did housing in Britain go from somewhere to live to everyone's favourite financial asset? In the first of a two part series, we look at the mortgage market since 1970; and ask whether the high prices and low supply we endure today are a financial phenomenon. With former building societies supremo Mark Boleat.Presented by Jonathan Ford and Neil Collins.With Mark Boleat.Produced and edited by Nick Hilton for Podot.In association with Briefcase.News Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When Jeff Bezos founded Amazon in 1994, it was an online bookshop. Now its tentacles are everywhere: it's a marketplace for third party goods from around the world, a huge cloud computing business and America's largest parcel delivery group. But is this a good thing or a bad one? We talk to Dana Mattioli of the Wall Street Journal about whether Amazon is the consumer''s friend or a monopolist to rank with Rockefeller's Standard Oil.Presented by Jonathan Ford and Neil Collins.With Dana Mattioli.Produced and edited by Nick Hilton for Podcast.In association with Briefcase.News Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The economist Michael Jensen, who died this month, did as much as any single thinker to shape modern financial capitalism. To his detractors, he was the High Priest of Greed who justified stratospheric CEO pay and predatory private equity. His admirers believe he revived Anglo Saxon capitalism. We discuss his ideas and legacy with the independent researcher and private equity expert Peter Morris. Presented by Jonathan Ford and Neil Collins.With Peter Morris.Produced and edited by Nick Hilton for Podcast.In association with Briefcase.News Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A natural monopoly delivering an essential service, Thames Water was privatised in 1989 with no debt. Now it's on its knees, crushed by more than £15bn of borrowings. Neil and Jonathan talk to Feargal Sharkey about what this says about Mrs Thatcher's most controversial privatisation, whether incentive regulation works, and whether we should just scrap the whole private structure and start again.Presented by Jonathan Ford and Neil Collins.With Feargal Sharkey.Produced and edited by Nick Hilton for Podot.In association with Briefcase.News Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

GEC was a British manufacturing titan; a cash-rich producer of everything from washing machines to railway trains. Then in a few years, it rebranded and restructured, shedding most of the old industrial bits to focus on telecoms. The result? By 2005, shiny new Marconi was no more. In the second of our Fallen Angel series, we talk to industrial historian Nick Comfort about one of the most abrupt collapses in UK corporate history and its heavy industrial cost Presented by Jonathan Ford and Neil Collins.With Nicholas Comfort.Produced and edited by Nick Hilton for Podot.In association with Briefcase.News Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Writer and industrial commentator Nick Comfort discusses the fall of ICI, a leading British manufacturing company. They delve into ICI's self-sabotage, struggles in adapting to markets, impact of leadership decisions, and the company's demerger. The conversation highlights the implications of corporate raiders, ownership shifts, and the importance of industrial policies in supporting British firms.