Supporting consumers and businesses

Our Director of Mortgages, Charles Roe, gave evidence to the Housing, Communities and Local Government Select Committee's inquiry into the affordability of home ownership. Charles shared the support that lenders are providing for first time buyers, and the pace of innovation in the sector to make homeownership possible for more people. 

On 5 November, we responded to the government’s launch of a new Financial Inclusion Strategy. As part of the strategy, a pilot will run between the five major UK financial institutions and Shelter, to help support people without a fixed address in opening bank accounts, a barrier that stops people being able to get paid work.  

November marked the publication of the Curriculum and Assessment Review (CAR) and the Department for Education’s commitment to make financial literacy a core part of the national curriculum from primary school onwards – something we and our members have long been advocating for. This is an important step towards ensuring all children and young people gain the skills and confidence to manage money well, supporting lifelong financial wellbeing and opportunity. We continue to work with government and partners to support delivery, share best practice and promote financial capability for all.  

At the start of the month, we, alongside our members, supported Talk Money Week (3 – 8 November), to highlight how financial education can help children, young people, parents, carers and teachers build these skills early. Find out more in this blog by Arber Cala, our Manager for Financial Inclusion and Capability.

As part of the industry’s commitment to business growth, we relaunched our mentoring support service MentorsMe, a refreshed go-to directory offering businesses access to a list of verified business mentoring organisations. 

Delivering a high growth economy

This month, we participated in the European Banking Federation Executive Committee alongside representatives of national trade associations across Europe. Our discussions highlighted the strong alignment between UK and EU financial services on key policy priorities and the banking sector’s role in building a more integrated, resilient, and globally competitive European financial ecosystem. Additionally, Bob Wigley, our Chair, recently attended the International Banking Federation Board meeting to advance our global standards-setting agenda.

Throughout November we published various consultation responses that can be viewed on our website.

Preventing economic crime

We welcomed the ambitious response from HM Treasury (HMT) on the 'Reform of the Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Counter-Terrorism Financing (CTF) Supervision Regime'. It indicated a commitment by HMT to consolidate professional services AML/CTF supervision into one Single Professional Services Supervisor (SPSS) within the Financial Conduct Authority, the key position we put forward in our 2023 consultation response as well as other points we have since been advocating for.

We have officially partnered with the BBC for its BBC Scam Safe week (22 – 28 November 2025) for the first time. The BBC is running a multi-platform series of programming and events, with content from across the BBC including TV, radio, iPlayer, Sounds and online. Part of the week is exploring efforts the industry takes to prevent fraud and scams, as well as providing consumer fraud prevention advice from our Take Five to Stop Fraud campaign. Alongside providing case studies and data, we have worked closely with the BBC to create a variety of joint assets and have been posting content on our different social media accounts, including the UK Finance LinkedIn account, Take Five to Stop Fraud social media channels and the Dedicated Card and Payment Crime Unit’s (DCPCU) LinkedIn account.

This month, the DCPCU shared a range of operational activities including:

• Three men from London were sentenced to a combined 10 years and four months in prison after stealing a combined £568,000 from victims by fraudulently posing as bank customers and gaining access to their accounts.
• The Unit worked alongside the National Crime Agency (NCA) to carry out two search warrants relating separate smishing investigations. This work identified both the suspects and addresses being used to send fraud texts to members of the public.

Enabling digital innovation

This month we hosted our third annual Key Conversations: New Digital Assets and Money 2025 event. The day featured a packed agenda and engaging discussions on the technologies, policies and societal shifts shaping the next era of money. You can find out more about this event in our LinkedIn post.

On 11 November, we hosted a lively discussion on the newly published Strategy for Future Retail Payments Infrastructure. The strategy marks an important milestone: a shared vision between government, regulators and industry for how the UK’s payments infrastructure should evolve to meet future needs. You can find out more about this event in a blog by our Director of Payments Nuala Jackson.

Transitioning to Net Zero 

Our sustainability policy team and Chair Bob Wigley attended COP30 climate conference in Brazil, representing the sector at a range of events. On the first day of the conference, we were confirmed by the UN as an observer to the climate negotiations during the opening plenary, giving access to talks and allowing the sector to continue supporting the process in the coming years. 

During COP30, we released a new case study hub at a reception with EY. It sets out more than 30 stories of positive climate and sustainability action by our members. Our final event of COP30 with KPMG and RMI brought together Chief Sustainability Officers from corporations and financial institutions to explore how firms can overcome practical barriers to implement net zero strategies. 

Upcoming events and training

Next month we’ll be running a webinar on Uncovering Hidden Cyber Risks in Your Third-Party Network on 1 December and our Preparing the UK Financial Services Sector for the Post-Quantum Era webinar on 11 December.

Our Economic Crime Congress 2025 is only a week away on 4 December. This year will focus on collaboration in action, ensuring that government, industry, and civil society work together to dismantle criminal networks, share intelligence, and build a stronger regulatory framework. View the full agenda and book your place on our website.

In 2026, we’ll be running several training courses, including our Digital Money and Blockchain course on 26 January, a Supporting Vulnerable Customers course on 28 January and a Compliance Monitoring course on 2 February. 

Our new event, Key Conversation: The Future of London as an International Banking Hub, will be held on 26 February 2026 and will offer a unique opportunity to discuss the challenges of managing UK operations and international banking hubs from London, while strengthening London’s role as a top financial centre. 

Register your interest to be the first to hear when more events are live, including brand new conferences launching in 2026.