The City needs to fall in love with risk again

Back in March, in a meeting room somewhere in the labyrinth of offices that makes up the Square Mile’s political headquarters at the Guildhall, the General Purposes Committee of Aldermen and the Communications and Corporate Affairs Sub Committee met to consider a report on a potential area of focus for a potential new Lord Mayor of the City of London.

The meeting played a part in setting in motion a series of events that could shape the future of the City of London and the entire British economy.

Over the course of the following months the Guildhall’s ancient wheels turned and by the end of September its traditions and unique form of democracy produced the 696th Lord Mayor, in the form of Alastair King.

Each Lord Mayor comes into office with a theme around which their term of office will be built, and it was King’s proposed theme that the two committees met to discuss back in March, ultimately giving it their seal of approval.

The 696th Lord Mayor’s theme is Growth Unleashed, dedicated to “promoting a revitalised, resilient and risk-ready City.” King has warned that “over the last 15 years or so, the City has forgotten how to take risks.”

Speaking to Sphere magazine, he said “Since 2008 there was a series of regulatory changes and mindset changes, and we’ve gone down a ‘safetyism’ route [and] that goes against what the City has done for centuries.”

The Lord Mayor’s formal role is to serve as an ambassador for London’s world-leading financial and professional services market, and the job comes with extraordinary convening power and diplomatic heft.

Last night, at the Guildhall Banquet, the new Lord Mayor told the Prime Minister that while “government provides the platform for growth…it is here, in the City, where growth will take root.” He spoke of the need to democratise the market by supporting retail investors and the benefit of encouraging “risk averse” pension funds to invest in UK equities. He also called for reforms to “provide a shot in the arm for homegrown companies looking to scale-up.”

It was stirring stuff, and we hope the PM took the message back to Downing Street.

As King has said, “The only way you get growth is via risk.” The Lord Mayor will find plenty of people in the City who agree with him, not least here at City AM.