Advancing the UK’s Economy! Financial and professional services play a crucial role in supporting the UK economy, contributing to millions of jobs and substantial tax revenue. This sector is integral to the UK’s global standing, offering significant economic benefits while driving innovation and sustainable practices. With a focus on enhancing economic growth, the industry continues to evolve, addressing challenges such as climate change and digital transformation. The industry’s commitment to sustainable finance and technological advancement positions it as a key player in shaping the future of global finance. The challenges and opportunities within this sector demand robust leadership and strategic vision to ensure sustained growth and adaptation to an evolving global environment. Chris Hayward, the Policy Chairman, brings a distinct expertise and deep commitment to ensuring the sector’s ongoing success. With a dedication to cultivating growth and ensuring that the UK’s financial services remain robust, Chris is actively shaping the future of this critical industry. His approach to leadership is marked by a deep understanding of both the challenges and opportunities facing the sector. Chris’s focus on collaboration and strategic partnerships is driving meaningful progress in areas such as sustainable finance, digital transformation, and investment in high-growth sectors, which reflects his understanding of the industry’s needs and his ability to drive meaningful change. The City of London Corporation, under Chris’s guidance, plays a significant role in financial and professional services. The Corporation is committed to promoting UK growth, supporting businesses, and driving economic initiatives that benefit the broader economy. Through various programs and partnerships, the City of London Corporation works to enhance the UK’s position as a leading global financial hub, nurturing innovation and sustainable practices across the industry. The Corporation’s efforts are aimed at ensuring long-term economic stability and growth, making it a pillar of the UK’s finance system. Let’s explore Chris’s strategic leadership journey in the financial services: Promoting UK Growth and Competitiveness According to Chris, the financial and professional services sector supports 2.4 million jobs across the UK. The City of London Corporation plays a key role in growing the sector. Over the next decade, it will continue to promote UK growth and competitiveness. This will be achieved by forging even closer ties with businesses and regulators. The Lord Mayor and Chris will continue to meet financial dignitaries across the world as ambassadors for the UK’s financial and professional services sector. The work already delivered is also expected to benefit the UK economy over the next decade. For example, the Mansion House Compact initiative is focused on improving pension returns for UK savers as well as providing the necessary capital to help UK businesses flourish. The Mansion House Compact requires its signatories, some of the UK’s largest pension providers, to commit 5% of their assets to unlisted equities by 2030 to unlock investment into high-growth companies. Taking this step alongside ongoing pension reforms aims to add an additional £75bn to the UK economy by 2030. Key Objectives for Britain’s Economic Future Working closely with over 300 partners from industry, policymakers, and regulators, the City of London Corporation has devised a package of reforms and initiatives to boost economic growth across the UK. This has been called the Vision for Economic Growth, and it is expected that this roadmap will add £225bn to the UK economy over the next decade. The Vision for Economic Growth outlines five key objectives that would deliver growth across Britain. These measures include supporting conditions for growth, raising investment levels, becoming a digital-first economy, becoming a leader in sustainable finance, and developing a world-class UK knowledge and support hub to showcase the offer globally. The City of London Corporation also stands ready to work with the new Labour Government in delivering on the important issues that matter, from boosting economic growth, creating more highly skilled jobs, and funding for public services, to tackling the climate crisis. The City of London Corporation voices its views on key challenges facing the city, including tax, regulation, skills, and access to talent, and devises initiatives, reports, and leverages its extensive networks to advocate on the issues that arise from the challenges on behalf of the city. Strengthening International Relationships As ambassadors for the UK’s financial and professional services, the Lord Mayor and Chris frequently meet business leaders, policymakers, and financial dignitaries from across the world to advocate Britain as a place to do business. They discuss how to make the UK’s relationship with outside countries stronger and how to better shape the future of financial services policy. The UK’s attractiveness speaks for itself: the London Stock Exchange recently regained its crown as the most valuable in Europe, and the most recent foreign direct investment report showed the UK gained the most financial and professional services investment across hubs globally. Meanwhile, London is situated at the crossroads of Europe’s biggest financial and tech sectors, making it one of the globe’s foremost hubs for innovation. London has one of the world’s most exciting fintech sectors, while it was also recently ranked top for the quality of its green finance offer. This naturally makes the city appealing to highly skilled workers and top talent. Ambition for World-Leading Excellence At the City of London Corporation, the ambition is to be a world-leading organisation, a goal that Chris carries everywhere he works and in all his experience. Before joining the City of London Corporation, he spent over 30 years traveling the globe building his property management firm, growing a B2B facilitation business, and helping to expand London’s second largest airport, Gatwick, which now sees more than 30 million passengers per year. Chris knows what it is like to be at the helm of small and large organizations, and it is why he has made it his mission to support firms of all sizes, from large multinationals to SMEs within the Square Mile. This summer, he launched the City of London Corporation’s first Small and Medium Enterprise Strategy to encourage companies to start and grow their business in the Square Mile. The