Every year, Financial News rounds up 100 of the most influential women in the City. Our list stands as a record of how far diversity has come in finance, and how far it still has to go.
We will publish the 2023 edition on 16 October. But before we do, we decided to check in on five of last year’s influencers to see how the last 12 months has treated them.
Some have gone from strength to strength. Others, alas, have not.
If you want to make sure you’re the first to know when nominations for future lists open, just email fnlists@dowjones.com and ask to be added the mailing list. You can check out our events calendar here and make sure you follow our newsletters, app, and social media accounts here so you don't miss out when the next list is published.
Emily Shepperd, Financial Conduct Authority
Last year, the City watchdog's chief operating officer played a key role as the FCA overhauled pay and perks for its 4,000 staff. Its decision to axe bonuses led to the first strike action in the regulator's history. But now, morale is on the up, after Emily Shepperd and her fellow executives helped navigate the turbulence.
Shepperd has cemented her COO spot, but other women have joined her among the highest ranks. After enforcement head Mark Steward left in November, Therese Chambers was promoted to take on the role jointly. (Steward departed to spend more time in Australia after a family tragedy, people close to the matter tell FN.)
Chambers joined Sheree Howard, who has been executive director of risk and compliance oversight since 2019. Other women in senior FCA posts include Sarah Pritchard, who joined in 2021 as executive director for markets and international, and Jessica Rusu, who became chief data officer in 2021, on the executive committee.
Amanda Blanc, Aviva
When she took charge of Aviva in 2020, Amanda Blanc was one of just seven female CEOs in the FTSE 100. Not much has changed. That number has crept up to 10 since we published last year's list with Allison Kirkby due to take the top job at BT.
Blanc has remained in charge while continuing to streamline Aviva by selling off business units. She has survived sexist remarks from shareholders. Even activist investor Cevian Capital, which had agitated for change, sold down its stake in February after praising a strategy that was delivering strong returns.
Blanc continues to hold political sway as well — Aviva is one of the major UK pension companies to have signed up to the government's recent Mansion House Compact, which pledges to unlock more capital for growth.
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Dame Alison Rose, NatWest
So much for the success stories. One notable FN100 alumna from last year was Dame Alison Rose, chief executive of NatWest until July, when the furore surrounding Nigel Farage's de-banking cost her the top job. Rose admitted to briefing a journalist on the ex-UKIP leader's affairs.
During her career, she had blazed a trail for women in banking and received honours for work including The Alison Rose Review of Female Entrepreneurship.
Anne Boden, Starling
One of the UK's top names in fintech, Anne Boden stepped down as Starling's boss since we last put her on the FN100 list. However, the announcement in May came as the challenger bank posted a record profit for the financial year.
Boden also made our anti-crypto influencers list, which we published in February, putting her in the company of other top women leaders in the City including Harriett Baldwin, the chair of the Treasury Committee.
Baroness Kay Swinburne, KPMG
One of the brightest minds in City regulation and policy, Baroness Kay Swinburne stepped down as KPMG's vice-chair of financial services in June.
The same month she was appointed a life peer and Lords Whip. Norton Rose Fulbright’s Farmida Bi — a fellow FN100 veteran — was appointed chair of the International Regulatory Strategy Group in her stead.
Julia Hoggett, London Stock Exchange
As head of the London Stock Exchange, Julia Hoggett, has been one of the key forces in trying to revive the UK’s listings sector. She was named chair of the UK Capital Markets Industry Taskforce, set up last summer, and has been vocal in defending IPO reforms after the FCA's move to scrap the premium listing category came under fire from some senior City executives.
Hoggett also publicly criticised large investors for being partly to blame for a UK skills drain, saying in a post on the LSE website in May that votes against compensation packages make it harder for companies to attract and retain top talent.
To get updated when nominations for future lists open, just email fnlists@dowjones.com and ask to be added to the mailing list. You can check out our events calendar here and make sure you follow our newsletters, app, and social media accounts here so you don't miss out when the next list is published.
To contact the authors of this story with feedback or news, email Justin Cash and Clare Dickinson
