And a piece of news to raise eyebrows in Australia. Two of the big associations in Britain’s financial services industry, the high-profile Association of British Insurers and the British Bankers Association, are looking at a merger. Although it’s only under investigation at present, the two associations have debated the options for some time, an ABI spokesman said.

If the two representative groups were to merge, the new body would represent a wider section of the financial services sector. While they two groups see strong merit in the idea of a joint organisation, the study will hopefully highlight the practical details, before the decision is put to the members.