Financial news

• Would you entrust a child’s life to a chatbot? That’s what happens every day that we fail to regulate AI | Gaby Hinsliff

  09-12-2025 07:00
  As deaths in the US are blamed on ChatGPT and UK teenagers turn to it for mental health advice, isn’t it obvious that market forces must not set the rules?It was just past 4am when a suicidal Zane Shamblin sent one last message from his car, where he had been drinking steadily for hours. “Cider’s empty. Anyways … Think this is the final adios,” he sent from his phone.The response was quick: “Alright brother. If this is it … then let it be known: you di
  
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• HMRC issues warning to all UK workers with National Insurance number

  12-12-2025 15:01 via express.co.uk
  You could be exposing yourself to risk of fraud by failing to follow this advice.
  
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• Every Poundland store set to close in 2026 - full list

  12-12-2025 14:25 via express.co.uk
  Poundland store closures will continue into 2026, with the chain confirming the locations of each.
  
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• HMRC alert as 1.5 million more Brits can open savings account paying 50% bonus

  12-12-2025 13:39 via express.co.uk
  The 50% cash bonus will be tax-free.
  
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• Martin Lewis issues warning to O2 customers over ‘£100s of extra charges’

  12-12-2025 13:30 via express.co.uk
  Martin Lewis has urged O2 customers to report the mobile network over the practice.
  
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• State pension 'reduced payments' update under new DWP 'wealth test'

  12-12-2025 13:00 via express.co.uk
  MPs also discussed bringing in a means-tested state pension system
  
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• Blue badge holders may be able to apply for little-known travel perk

  12-12-2025 12:56 via express.co.uk
  Nearly 300,000 blue badge holders would be eligible.
  
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• Warning issued to anyone earning over £40,000

  12-12-2025 12:37 via express.co.uk
  Changes announced in the Budget could make a big difference to those earning over one cut off point.
  
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• Pound set to fall in ‘screeching turnaround’ as UK GDP numbers hammer currency

  12-12-2025 12:08 via express.co.uk
  The economy contracted by 0.1% in October, the Office for National Statistics said.
  
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• Major HSBC update affecting 327 branches across UK

  12-12-2025 11:52 via express.co.uk
  Over the past five years, the total number of branches across all brands has fallen by more than one third
  
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• Royal Mail issues major delivery day warning to 57 UK postcodes - full list

  12-12-2025 11:45 via express.co.uk
  The postal service has apologised to impacted customers.
  
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• State pensioners with a disability may be able to boost income by £110 per week

  12-12-2025 11:20 via express.co.uk
  The benefit helps with extra costs for those who need it.
  
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• Nationwide dealt £44m blow after building society ignored 'red flags'

  12-12-2025 11:04 via express.co.uk
  A watchdog found that Nationwide was aware that some of its personal current account customers were using their accounts for business activity, but did not have the right controls to manage the resulting financial risks.
  
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• Lloyds Bank warning for customers over £50 account payments

  10-12-2025 13:51 via express.co.uk
  A representative from Lloyds Bank has issued an update on the scheme.
  
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• NS&I issues update over Premium Bonds £1million prizes

  10-12-2025 13:04 via express.co.uk
  You can win a range of prizes in the monthly Premium Bonds prize draw
  
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• BBC's £3k alert to anyone using 'pay later' schemes as accounts 'drained'

  10-12-2025 13:04 via express.co.uk
  Louise Minchin said 'persistent' attempts are being made at Brits shop online in the lead-up to Christmas - but there are some red flags to easily spot crooks
  
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• Nationwide's '50-30-20' method boosts your savings

  10-12-2025 13:03 via express.co.uk
  A simple budgeting method recommended by Nationwide could help people struggling to save money and manage their finances
  
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• Savers face £162 ISA penalty with HMRC to close 'loophole'

  10-12-2025 12:57 via express.co.uk
  HMRC says it will be clamping down on cash held in stocks and shares ISAs.
  
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• Rachel Reeves announces enquiry into herself - and finds she's innocent!

  10-12-2025 12:52 via express.co.uk
  The Chancellor pledges to investigate Budget leaks and lies. There can only be one verdict.
  
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• HMRC 'get your tax right' alert to anyone with a side hustle

  10-12-2025 12:48 via express.co.uk
  With Christmas around the corner, extra income from side gigs is a welcome gift. But, some people might have crossed a line that can't be ignored.
  
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• Barclays explains rules that apply at all its branches at a specific time of day

  10-12-2025 12:11 via express.co.uk
  A customer was shocked to see a sign at their local Barclays branch
  
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• State pension triple lock update as Rachel Reeves makes huge statement

  10-12-2025 11:42 via express.co.uk
  The future of the triple lock has been under scrutiny as the cost of the policy continues to soar.
  
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• UK savers warned top savings rates will vanish within days - act now

  10-12-2025 11:30 via express.co.uk
  The Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee meets next Thursday
  
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• Australia is facing its shortest rate cut cycle in 30 years as the RBA hints it may have to start hiking

  09-12-2025 08:15
  It’s sure to leave many mortgage holders feeling short-changed given the RBA’s equally historic 13 rate hikes through 2022 and 2023The Reserve Bank’s governor, Michele Bullock, has effectively ruled out further rate cuts and flagged that hikes might be needed in 2026 if the recent inflationary rebound proves persistent.Speaking at a press conference after the widely expected decision to hold the cash rate at 3.6%, Bullock seemed surprisingly upbeat as she delivered the bad news
  
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• UK campaigners condemn ‘creepy’ digital billboards that can track viewers’ responses

  09-12-2025 08:00
  Tech company has installed the advertising screens in hundreds of apartment blocks across 20 British citiesDigital billboards that can film viewers’ responses to adverts have been installed in hundreds of apartment blocks, in a move that civil liberty campaigners called “creepy as hell”.The supplier, 30Seconds Group, says the cameras allow them to track “occupant engagement” from residents who are a “captive audience” as they wait for lifts to their apar
  
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• HMRC owes me £2,200 but says it could be 33 weeks before it pays me back

  09-12-2025 08:00
  A reader says they overpaid their national insurance, but seem to be lending the government money with no interestI have two roles within the NHS, which has resulted in overpayments of national insurance each year.Since Covid, the refund system has slowly ground to a halt. I was told in October that I am owed £2,200 and that it could take 33 weeks to receive the payment. Continue reading...
  
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• China’s record trade surplus reveals its biggest strength – and hidden weakness

  09-12-2025 07:52
  Booming Chinese exports have driven trade surplus past $1tn but also reveal the extent of country’s reliance on foreign marketsA boom in exports that has pushed China’s trade surplus past $1tn for the first time reveals the extent to which its economy is still overwhelmingly reliant on foreign markets – and the difficulty figures like Donald Trump will have in trying to rebalance global trade.Data released on Monday shows that in the first 11 months of this year, China’s
  
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• UK households cut spending at fastest pace in almost five years, says Barclays

  09-12-2025 06:00
  Bank reports 1.1% drop in card spending despite Black Friday boost for retailersUK households cut back on spending at the fastest pace in almost five years last month as consumers put Christmas shopping on hold, according to a leading survey.Adding to concerns that uncertainty surrounding the budget has helped dampen consumer confidence, Barclays said card spending fell 1.1% year on year in November – the largest fall since February 2021. Continue reading...
  
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• ‘I feel it’s a friend’: quarter of teenagers turn to AI chatbots for mental health support

  09-12-2025 06:00
  Experts warn of dangers as England and Wales study shows 13- to 17-year-olds consulting AI amid long waiting lists for servicesIt was after one friend was shot and another stabbed, both fatally, that Shan asked ChatGPT for help. She had tried conventional mental health services but “chat”, as she came to know her AI “friend”, felt safer, less intimidating and, crucially, more available when it came to handling the trauma from the deaths of her young friends.As she started
  
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• Palantir: the world’s ‘scariest company’? – podcast

  09-12-2025 04:00
  How far will tech firm Palantir go to ‘save the West’? With Michael Steinberger and Johana BhuiyanWhy do some consider Palantir the world’s ‘scariest company’ and who is its chief executive, Alex Karp?Michael Steinberger, the author of The Philosopher in the Valley: Alex Karp, Palantir and the Rise of the Surveillance State, describes Karp’s origin story to Nosheen Iqbal and the way that his political positions have changed over the years. The pair also discus
  
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