Reeves seeks outsider to run Britain's banking watchdog

Rachel Reeves, the chancellor, is seeking a heavyweight outsider to tally Britain's main banking watchdog, with a elder Barclays enforcement expected to beryllium among the apical contenders for the job.

Sky News has learnt that the Treasury is to advertise the station of main enforcement of the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), which oversees fiscal services firms specified arsenic banks and insurers, wrong days.

One root said the recruitment process could footwear disconnected arsenic aboriginal arsenic adjacent week.

The process, which volition tally for respective months, volition pb to the assignment of a successor to Sam Woods, a long-serving authoritative who has served 2 presumption successful the role.

This weekend, it emerged that Katharine Braddick, a erstwhile elder Treasury civilian servant who joined Barclays successful 2022, is expected to beryllium among the applicants for the role.

Whitehall insiders said Ms Braddick would beryllium a beardown contender for the station if she decided to apply.

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A erstwhile director-general, fiscal services astatine the Treasury, Ms Braddick has been Barclays' radical caput of strategical argumentation and advisor to the bank's main enforcement for three-and-a-half years.

Prior to the Treasury, she worked astatine the Financial Services Authority and was heavy progressive successful governmental negotiations connected fiscal services authorities relating to Brexit.

Barclays declined to remark connected Ms Braddick's behalf connected Saturday.

In effect to an enquiry from Sky News, a Treasury spokesperson said: "Growing the system is the Chancellor's fig 1 mission.

"Every regulator has a portion to play by regulating for maturation not conscionable risk."

The chancellor is said to beryllium keen to place candidates from extracurricular Britain's existing regulatory set-up to caput the PRA.

A tiny fig of interior candidates is thought to see David Bailey, the Bank of England's enforcement manager for prudential policy.

Ms Reeves's evident tendency for an outsider comes amid a wider propulsion for Britain's economical watchdogs to region reddish portion and reorient themselves towards growth-focused policies.

Earlier this year, Nikhil Rathi, main enforcement of the Financial Conduct Authority, was appointed to a 2nd word successful complaint pursuing intensive discussions astir the body's five-year strategy.

Since then, some the FCA and PRA person removed rules relating to diverseness and inclusion successful the fiscal sector, portion the erstwhile abandoned a program to 'name and shame' companies which were the taxable of enforcement investigations.

The Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) was abolished earlier this twelvemonth arsenic portion of the government's thrust to trim unnecessary regulation.

The hunt for the adjacent PRA brag volition get underway little than 2 months earlier the chancellor delivers an autumn Budget successful which she is expected to person to rise tens of billions of pounds done further taxation rises.

Mr Woods' adjacent determination volition beryllium intimately watched successful the City.

He has been seen arsenic a imaginable campaigner to win Andrew Bailey erstwhile the Bank of England governor's word runs retired successful 2028, though it is unclear whether helium covets the job.

As CEO of the PRA, Mr Woods is besides a lawman politician of the Bank of England, a subordinate of the Bank's Court of Directors, and a manager of the FCA.

The chancellor has shown a willingness to enlistee from extracurricular the Treasury, appointing Bank of America concern banking seasoned Jim O'Neil arsenic 2nd imperishable caput to the Treasury earlier this year.

Mr O'Neil had besides served arsenic the caput of UK Financial Investments, the bureau acceptable up to negociate taxpayers' stakes successful Britain's bailed-out banks.