In the City

Francine Lacqua meets Ray Dalio on OceanX in the port of Nice for the UN Ocean Conference. They speak about radical transparency, building and leaving one of the largest hedge funds and what’s next.Check out the Originals show: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2025-10-10/ray-dalio-on-markets-debt-and-the-next-global-crisis-videoSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Make sense of the world with one essential conversation, every week. Mishal Husain, one of Britain's best interviewers, brings her signature blend of curiosity and tenacity to weekly conversations with world leaders, business titans, and cultural icons, revealing who they really are and how they see the world changing around them.Follow the podcast wherever you listen, so you don't miss an episode.https://link.podtrac.com/iu94w2n4See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week, we bring you an extended version of the premiere episode of a new Bloomberg Originals series, Leaders with Francine Lacqua. Francine visits Finland, where the threat from neighboring Russia looms large. She speaks to President Alexander Stubb about resilience and how his country is preparing for an uncertain future. Watch the Originals program here: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2025-09-12/finnish-president-stubb-on-resilience-in-russia-s-shadow-videoSubscribe to the Management and Work newsletter here: https://www.bloomberg.com/account/newsletters/management-and-workSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s In the City, hosts Allegra Stratton and Francine Lacqua are joined by James Kanagasooriam, chief research officer at Focaldata, to unpack how AI is reshaping employment. The conversation explores how AI’s ripple effects are hitting the white-collar sector in the UK, from shrinking graduate job pipelines to the potential collapse of middle-class tax bases.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves delivered the annual Mansion House speech to the key players in London’s financial sector this week. Bloomberg’s City Editor Katherine Griffiths joins host Francine Lacqua to discuss how the City reacted to the Chancellor's announcements, particularly reforms to ring-fencing rules.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Earlier this year, the UK government directed its antitrust watchdog, the Competition and Markets Authority, to be "less risk averse" and to align more closely with its pro-growth agenda. We invited the CMA's interim chair Doug Gurr to update us on that mission and to explain what the group is doing to support the government's pledge to make it easier for businesses and the economy to grow. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Just a few months ago, the UK housing market seemed to be finding its footing. That hope has since faded. In June, house prices fell to their lowest rate in over two years, according to new figures from Nationwide Building Society. This surprised economists who had been expecting a small uptick. The decline follows the government’s April decision to raise transaction taxes—a move that’s added to the burden for buyers already grappling with high borrowing costs. On this week’s In the City, host Allegra Stratton is joined by Bloomberg Opinion columnist Marcus Ashworth and European real estate reporter Damian Shepherd to examine the UK housing market’s slowdown—and what might come next.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

According to new polling, the party led by Nigel Farage now stands at 34% support, nine points ahead of Labour and well ahead of the Conservatives. Hosts Francine Lacqua and David Merritt sit down with Zia Yusuf, head of Reform UK’s own “Department for Government Efficiency,” to explore the party’s rapid ascent and the political undercurrents driving it.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s no secret the Labour government’s policy to tax the UK’s wealthiest as part of its effort to fix a budget crisis left by the Conservatives has caused Prime Minister Keir Starmer some headaches. The biggest exodus of wealth in the UK’s recent history appears to be underway, and the data shows the departure is likely to be a drain on the economy. But is it enough for Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves to change course? And should she?Bloomberg reporter Benjamin Stupples joins host Allegra Stratton to discuss. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

London has long prided itself on being a global tech hub, promoting the image of a thriving and ambitious capital for innovation. But that reputation is beginning to slip. Major UK fintech firms like Revolut and Wise are shifting their focus—and listings—to the US, drawn by stronger valuations, deeper market liquidity and better access to compute infrastructure. As more companies look across the Atlantic, can London live up to the tech center image it projects? In this week’s episode of In the City, host Francine Lacqua speaks with Bloomberg editor Amy Thomson to explore whether London is keeping pace or simply masking its decline.Read more: https://www.bloomberg.com/features/2025-european-startups-to-watch/ https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-06-10/europe-s-ipo-drought-has-stock-exchanges-battling-for-listingsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With the UK government’s spending review fast approaching, all eyes are on Westminster. In a matter of days, the public will gain a clearer sense of how funding is set to be allocated across departments over the next three years. There’s growing speculation that Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves will make a significant push on infrastructure—a signal, perhaps, of shifting priorities. In this week’s episode of In the City, hosts Allegra Stratton and Francine Lacqua sit down with Sam Richards, chief executive of the think tank Britain Remade to unpack the upcoming review and step back to look at the bigger picture: Could this mark a real turning point? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today's show features a special episode from Bloomberg's Merryn Talks Your Money mini-series on how to navigate the UK housing market. Professor Yolande Barnes at University College London joins host Merryn Somerset Webb to discuss the market as a whole: what’s the outlook for home prices, what’s the best strategy when purchasing your first property and why the UK is at risk of an oversupply in houses. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Francine Lacqua hosts this week's episode from the Qatar Economic Forum in Doha, where she and guests Matthew Martin, a Bloomberg senior reporter covering sovereign wealth funds, and Bloomberg deals reporter Dinesh Nair, discuss the wave of dealmaking emerging from the Middle East. Following US President Donald Trump’s recent visit to the region, the White House announced that Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates have made over $1 trillion in new economic commitments to the US, albeit with few details. These proposed deals are to span a range of key sectors, from defense and aviation to artificial intelligence. If completed, they would signal a major push toward strategic partnerships and long-term diversification. In this episode, we explore how business leaders are interpreting Trump's trip and what the region's evolving relationship with the US means to the investment landscape going forward. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The UK government’s plan to scrap the “non-dom” tax status—a policy that allowed wealthy foreign residents to avoid taxes on overseas income—was designed to close a loophole and raise billions of pounds in tax revenue. However, according to a new study from the Centre for Economics and Business Research, it might end up costing the economy more than it brings in if just one in four of the 74,000 people affected chooses to leave the country.In this week’s episode of In the City, hosts Allegra Stratton and Francine Lacqua sit down with Nimesh Shah, chief executive of Blick Rothenberg, to unpack what’s at stake. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's been a whirlwind week for UK trade — first a deal with India, and now, a surprise announcement: a US-UK trade agreement. With aims to reduce trade barriers and increase market access for American imports and industrial exports, this latest deal sets the stage for closer economic ties between the two countries.Hosts David Merritt and Francine Lacqua speak with Dan Hanson from Bloomberg Economics to unpack the US-UK trade deal and what it could mean for the UK's broader economic outlook.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

London is closing the gap with New York for the title of world’s top financial center, according to the latest Global Financial Centres Index. Is it a signal that the the UK’s efforts to rejuvenate its banking and investment sectors post-Brexit are starting to pay off? On this week’s In The City, host David Merritt sits down with Chris Hayward, Policy Chairman of the City of London Corp., who makes the argument it is.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On Tuesday, Megan Greene, one of the Bank of England’s most hawkish policymakers, said that while President Donald Trump’s wave of global tariffs is likely to raise prices in the US, the effect in the UK could be the opposite. “I think that the tariffs actually represent more of a disinflationary risk than an inflationary risk,” she says. On this week’s In The City, host Francine Lacqua sits down with Bloomberg UK economy reporter Tom Rees to break down Greene’s comments. They explore how US tariffs could create disinflationary pressure in the UK through trade diversion, and what that means for the BOE's outlook—including the likelihood of aggressive rate cuts and the use of quantitative easing.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week's In the City, hosts Allegra Stratton and David Merritt delve into the likely nationalization of British Steel and how the crisis at the Chinese-owned company is forcing the Labour government to rethink its relationship with Beijing. Featuring Bloomberg Opinion columnist Matthew Brooker and senior economics reporter Philip Aldrick, the discussion probes conflicting views on China's role as a UK trade partner, and the broader economic implications amid current UK-US trade talks.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Host Francine Lacqua, sits down with founder of Bridgewater Associates, Ray Dalio. They discuss a turbulent week in markets and identify driving forces, which shape economies and fuel the rise and fall of nations. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s In the City, host Francine Lacqua discusses the rise of private credit amid economic uncertainty driven in large part by US President Donald Trump and his global trade war. Joined by Bloomberg senior reporter Silas Brown, Lacqua looks at how key figures like Blackrock Chief Executive Officer Larry Fink have emphasized a shift towards private markets, and the importance of non-publicly traded opportunities as a way for average Americans to build wealth. The discussion also includes the challenges of high interest rates on valuations, and the evolving regulatory landscape required to protect retail investors as they gain access to private investments.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.