On a mission to transform the world of finance for the better

DE&I Report; a communications conundrum

AI & Ethics: Revolutionising marketing without compromising ethical principles 

Launching a new sector leader

30 Series - 30 Events: 30 Years

Teamspirit hits the Big Apple!

Grabbing attention for the nation’s pensions

The New Adviser

Sustainability in action

Helping our audience get an AER full

How marketers can profit from slowing down the ‘cycle of more’

Is generative AI creating a race & ethnicity representation crisis in comms? 

__Eleanor, Chair of Rise, the Teamspirit women & gender affinity network:__ As we approach International Women's Day (IWD) 2025 on March 8, it's a pivotal moment for women leaders to step forward in solidarity and help #AccelerateAction for gender equality. The current rate of progress suggests that it will take until 2158—roughly five generations from now—to achieve full gender parity, according to the World Economic Forum. This stark reality underscores the urgent need for action.

Focusing on the need to Accelerate Action emphasises the importance of taking immediate steps to achieve gender equality. It calls for increased momentum and urgency in addressing the systemic barriers and biases that women face, both in personal and professional spheres. Here are seven ways that our team of leaders are already contributing to the cause:

### 1. Sandy Downs - Senior Account Director and Head of DE&I: Advocate for Policy Changes
With the global winds of change blowing against DE&I, now is the time for women leaders to step up and use their platforms to advocate for policies that promote gender equality. This includes pushing for equal pay, parental leave, and anti-discrimination laws. It means ensuring their businesses are tracking and reporting on gender pay gaps, ethnicity pay gaps, and disability pay gaps. By influencing policy, we can create a more equitable environment for all women at a structural level, which can’t change with a political gust.

### 2. Montserrat Tojeiro - Managing Director: Mentorship and Sponsorship
Mentorship and sponsorship are crucial in helping women advance in their careers. Women leaders can mentor young women, providing guidance and support as they navigate their professional journeys. Sponsorship, on the other hand, involves actively promoting and advocating for women in the workplace, helping them secure opportunities for advancement.

### 3. Sam Turner - Head of Client Services: Promote Inclusive Workplaces
Creating an inclusive workplace culture is essential for gender equality. Women leaders can champion diversity and inclusion initiatives, ensuring that all voices are heard and valued. This includes implementing mentoring talent, training programs on unconscious bias and actively fostering an environment where women feel safe and supported.

### 4. Sarah Lewis - Social Strategy Director: Build a Positive Online Voice 
The digital landscape is evolving, and women leaders have the opportunity - and responsibility - to be a force for good on socials and beyond. This includes being a visible voice for feminism, and also uplifting female voices. 

### 5. Ursula Delaney - PR Director: Support Women's Education and Development
Investing in women's education and professional development is key to closing the gender gap. Women leaders can support initiatives that provide women with the skills and knowledge they need to succeed. This includes scholarships, training programs, and networking opportunities.

### 6. Jo Preston - Group Board Director: Raise Awareness and Challenge Stereotypes
Raising awareness about gender inequality and challenging stereotypes is vital. Women leaders can use their influence to highlight the achievements of women and challenge the societal norms that hold women back. By changing the narrative, we can inspire the next generation of female leaders.

### 7. Fiona Couper - Chief Marketing Officer and ESG Lead: Collaborate and Build Alliances
Collaboration is crucial in the fight for gender equality. Women leaders can build alliances with other organizations, both within and outside their industries, to create a united front. By working together, we can amplify our impact and drive meaningful change.

### Conclusion
The journey towards gender equality is long, but by accelerating action, we can speed up the rate of progress worldwide. As women leaders, we have the power and responsibility to drive this change. Let's step forward in solidarity this International Women's Day and commit to taking swift and decisive action to achieve gender equality. Together, we can create a more equitable future for all.


Accelerate Action for Gender Equality: A Call to Women Leaders

Slowly but surely, the view of cryptocurrency as a fringe asset embraced only by a loyal, speculative few is changing. This switch in sentiment is being driven by several factors, with one of the most influential being the development of proper regulatory frameworks to support cryptocurrency. Whilst the average consumer might not be overly invested in the technical details of regulation, the knock on effects for the wider economy must be considered. Recent months and years have seen the UK’s two biggest trading partners, the US and EU surge ahead of them in the development of regulation that provides clarity, consumer protections and encourages investment. 

## What's been going on abroad?
Readers of the financial news and market analysts witnessed a big shake up in Crypto markets at the back end of last year. The re-election of former President Donald Trump sent markets soaring across the board with none benefitting more so than crypto markets. Bitcoin, the world’s most universally recognised digital currency, broke the $90,000 barrier, and the total global market value of Cryptocurrency climbed above $3 trillion for the first time in three years. This renewed enthusiasm was fueled by the expectation that the incoming President will continue his ‘pro-crypto’ stance, encouraging widespread adoption of the asset class by American businesses and streamlining compliance requirements. 

Meanwhile in Europe, the Markets in Crypto-Asset regulations (MiCA) have taken full effect across the EU, providing cryptocurrency firms, investors and consumers alike with a clearer set of rules and boundaries that are to be followed. Whilst some Crypto leaders, especially the less established players, will view much of the regulation as overly burdensome and as a drag on investment, having a clear framework dedicated to the asset class is undoubtedly a step in the right direction. A step that the UK has yet to emulate. 

## What’s going on at home? 
In short, not as much as our counterparts in Europe and America. Last year the FCA only regulated four new cryptocurrency firms in the UK, including a full 6-month patch where not a single new firm was authorised. As with any type of business regulation, there is of course a difficult balancing act to strike between ensuring consumer protection, preventing market abuse and encouraging innovation. But if the UK wants to continue living up to its moniker as one of the world's ‘Financial Capitals’ then one would think more has to be done in this space to prevent falling well behind our peers. 

Whilst not without its challenges, Crypto offers the potential for faster international transfers, greater transparency and lower transaction costs. These positives, coupled with recent research from the regulator revealing that 12% of UK adults now own a form of cryptocurrency, offers ample evidence that this growing sector of finance needs to be embraced.

## Steps in the right direction?
Despite the slow start, positive steps are being made in the right direction. The FCA recently regulated two significant players in the Cryptocurrency space, Coinbase and Bitpanda, with the former noting that the UK has quickly grown into their largest market outside of the US. Furthermore, the FCA also announced that their full cryptoasset regulatory regime is due to go live in 2026, providing standardised rules for Crypto firms operating in the UK and therefore bolstering market integrity. 

The UK has long been the home to innovative, world beating financial services companies, from high street giants like Barclays to emerging fintechs like Monzo. Moreover, the FCA itself has proven itself to be a pioneering innovator, with their fintech regulatory sandbox proving so successful it has been implemented by several other nations. If the right regulatory balance is struck, there is no reason why the UK cannot also be home to pre-eminent Cryptocurrency firms of the future.

## Key stats 
- Bitcoin - broke 90k dollars for the first time and global markets value topped 3 trillion usd for the first time in three years - [https://www.qmul.ac.uk/media/news/2024/hss/why-donald-trumps-election-win-fuelled-a-stock-market-surge.html](https://www.qmul.ac.uk/media/news/2024/hss/why-donald-trumps-election-win-fuelled-a-stock-market-surge.html)
- Criticism of MICA - [https://www.ulam.io/blog/mica-regulations-and-their-impact-on-the-crypto-industry](https://www.ulam.io/blog/mica-regulations-and-their-impact-on-the-crypto-industry)
- UK being sluggish on approvals - [https://www.cityam.com/the-uk-is-at-a-crypto-crossroads/](https://www.cityam.com/the-uk-is-at-a-crypto-crossroads/) 
- Coinbase approval and statistics - [https://coinmarketcap.com/academy/article/f632bdd5-6b46-48b1-b473-5cfee459c281](https://coinmarketcap.com/academy/article/f632bdd5-6b46-48b1-b473-5cfee459c281)
- Bitpanda approval - [https://www.cityam.com/bitpanda-shake-up-uk-crypto-market/](https://www.cityam.com/bitpanda-shake-up-uk-crypto-market/)

The view of cryptocurrency as a fringe asset embraced only by a loyal, speculative few is changing. Here’s what’s been going on and why the FCA may yet be a pioneering innovator in the space

Why the UK is playing catchup in the race for Cryptocurrency infrastructure

Celebrating our 30th year with our 30 Series, this month we take a look at the stories that mattered.

Since Teamspirit launched in 1995, the UK’s financial services sector has been transformed. Not only are ways of working almost unrecognisable, accelerated by technology and changes in attitude, but the industry landscape has been shaped by headline-grabbing events, regulation, and product innovation.

As our timeline across the three decades shows, the journey to today has been quite remarkable.

[View the timeline here](/30-years-timeline)

To celebrate our 30th birthday, we're looking back at some significant financial moments over the last 30 years. Which stand out to you?

While Spotify’s fascinating annual reveal of our music habits, or food retailers’ nudges of what we might enjoy next demonstrate how personalisation of communications and experience  creates win-wins for brand and customer, why is financial services late to the party?  

Over half of consumers state they’re more likely to repeat buy after a personalised experience[1]. Equally, 80% of financial institutions view personalisation as essential to meet the required Consumer Duty led standards[2].

So what do we need to do to play catch-up? That was the crux of our breakfast event, run in partnership with The Financial Services Forum, with three leaders in the field:
- David Conner, Head of Experience Design at Scottish Widows
- Simon Ripton, Director of Propositions at Open finance platform Moneyhub
- Richard Sullivan, Financial Services Lead, LinkedIn
- Chair - Fiona Couper, CMO, Teamspirit

Key take-aways from the event held at Mintel were:

- __Moments of truth.__ The importance of interacting with customers at key moments in their journey was critical - not just when providers wanted to sell to them
- __Enriching existing data was essential__ to deliver meaningful customer understanding. And how Open Finance enabled improved tailoring of solutions on dimensions including vulnerability, behaviour and risk
- __More creativity is required to achieve cut through.__  The panel discussed how personalisation needed to think bigger and go beyond the traditional
- __The need for a value exchange.__ How there was a need to provide value in terms of rewards, decision-making information and entertainment through content and gamification in exchange for customers’ data,  time and loyalty.
- __Generational tailoring.__ The meeting discussed that given given Gen X and Gen Z's preferences and expectations of channels, tech and communication, tailoring now needed to work at these levels too
- __The need for companies to  now deliver customer personalisation at Total Experience (TX) level not just UX__, spanning all customer touchpoints
- __‘Continuous engagement' as a marketing strategy.__ Speakers discussed how the impact of different engagements, nudges and interventions could and should be tested continuously to create learnings for later roll out and incorporation into experiences

Personalisation is just one of the emerging trends explored in our recent Signals report which you can view/download [here](https://www.teamspirit.co.uk/news-insights/2025-signals-report)

![FSF Feb Event](//images.ctfassets.net/sxw14dxmazhg/8yzOfsf3nVFljfjyNU1qb/cc45d9380b3a50f08a13626370a56d06/FSF_Feb_Event.png)

## Sources:

1. [https://www.twilio.com/en-us/blog/announcing-the-state-of-personalization-2021](https://www.twilio.com/en-us/blog/announcing-the-state-of-personalization-2021)
2. [https://www.dynamicyield.com/personalization-maturity-report-for-finance-2023/](https://www.dynamicyield.com/personalization-maturity-report-for-finance-2023/)

With high impact personalised customer experiences and communications on the rise, financial services is one of the slower sectors to the party.  What do experts from Scottish Widows, LinkedIn and Moneyhub feel FS needs to focus on?

How can financial services provide more personalised experiences?

This week marks Donald Trump’s return to The White House, with the now 47th President of the United States sworn in at the Capitol building on Monday. The new commander-in-chief re-enters the oval office in a strong position, holding slim but solid Republican majorities in both chambers of congress, making him well set to implement the agenda he was elected on back in November. As one would expect there have already been plenty of articles penned on what the President’s return will mean for a variety of industries, but in this blog we examine what Trump 2.0 might spell for our sector - communications. 

Pretty immediately after Kamala Harris conceded the race last year, we began to see an evident cultural shift among the business class in America. As we know, Trump already has one tech billionaire (and the richest one at that) Elon Musk on-side, but we have subsequently seen both Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos cozy up to the President, with the latter announcing that his Meta platforms will reduce content moderation and drop their ‘fact-checkers’, instead adopting an X-style community notes feature. Additionally, we have also observed Trump-style cultural shifts in household names like McDonald’s and Ford Motors, who have both announced they will be moving away from their previous commitments to bolstering diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) at their companies. 

If these changes are anything to go by, the next four years will see social media spaces becoming increasingly like the Wild West, with plenty of users regaining their voices and influence on the major platforms who had previously lost that privilege in the era of strict moderation. It might also see further fragmentation, with certain audiences becoming increasingly isolated. [Bluesky](https://bsky.app/), for example, is one such platform that has benefitted from Musk's policy changes over at X, a place where jaded ex-twitter users have gathered to exchange information free from the billionaire’s tinkering. Additionally, It would not be surprising if we continue to see American firms drop or water down their ESG and DEI communications, as corporate America increasingly tries to court favour with the incoming administration.

Reassuringly for brands who value these initiatives, there is compelling evidence to say that these trends will endure. Our [2025 Signals report](https://www.teamspirit.co.uk/news-insights/2025-signals-report) points to the ‘quiet acceleration’ in ESG progress, with businesses on both sides of the Atlantic preferring to put their heads down and work on delivering their commitments, even if not broadcasting their work in fear of the backlash due to the politicisation of the issue. In the UK, efforts are being made by both the FCA and the new Labour government to increase DE&I, including new revisions to the Corporate Governance Code that will pressure boards into greater action on this front, with 2025 likely to see ethnicity pay gap reporting becoming mandatory for large firms. 

So how can we as marketers, PR practitioners and brand-builders stand out in the era of Trump 2.0? 

This first step may seem simple but businesses can stand out by being themselves and sticking to their principles. If a company is genuinely committed to reducing its carbon footprint or increasing the diversity of its workforce, that needn’t be undermined by a change of administration that might be less friendly to these objectives. If anything, there’s an opportunity to lean further into what makes it unique. In a crowded and noisy landscape, notable characteristics and clear values stand out and will be appreciated that much more by customers and clients. 

Equally important is making sure that brands are taking a razor sharp position in each of the channels in which they operate, even if these might cut against the current narrative in their industry. In the era of misinformation and generative AI, ensuring 
 communications are genuinely insightful, targeted, and well-backed with data, is an invaluable advantage. 

Only time will tell exactly what the next Trump term, and indeed the 2020s as a whole, will spell for communications. But by ensuring that a brand remains committed to its positioning, taking self-assured and consistent positions to stand out from the crowd, it will likely be doing better than most. 

What does Trump 2.0 mean for communications?

__Going for growth__ sums up the hyperfocus set to dominate economies and financial services (FS) in 2025, as we look at the year ahead through our annual Signals Report. 

If 2024 was a year of uncertainty, with hedging on action due to the elections in which over half of the world’s population participated, 2025 is in one sense calmer. The need for brands to communicate value, trust and reward will be carried forward, as consumer spend levels remain under pressure. But with policy direction, taxes and tariffs – both in the UK and in the US – better understood, decisions can now be made.

As FS communication specialists, we continue to act as a barometer for the headwinds of change, as we help brands to transform the world of finance for the better, by helping people to think differently about money. In our Signals Report this year, we’re providing a smart topline on what’s going on and what marketers need to do about it. 

Growth will come from brand fame building activity, explored in Maximizing Sponsorship; The Power of Personality; Cracking the Memory Code; Scaling Internationally. 

It will also be through tech-enabled efficiencies, as FS finally realize smoother, more personalized experiences. Read how to make the right leap in: Untangling the Messy Middle; In Data We Trust; AI and Advice isn’t the Answer, it’s the Question. And don’t miss the impact of getting tech right both on a critical audience and via a critical channel, covered in Rethinking Retirement and PR in a New Media Age.

__Let’s get on with it. __

Download the report [here](//assets.ctfassets.net/sxw14dxmazhg/3AA1Ze0XX4ZUOO5ZR6FnKN/e4923de83bdfcb0aeb1a9e043e82e196/TS_2025_Signals_Report_US.pdf)!

If you’d like to discuss the impact of these signals on your business contact us at [hello@teamspiritfs.com](mailto:hello@teamspiritfs.com)


Our 2025 Signals report is out now! With a Going for Growth hyperfocus set to dominate economies and financial services in 2025, here’s our view on the challenges and changes set to impact fs brand communications in the year ahead

2025 Signals Report 

__Going for growth__ sums up the hyperfocus set to dominate economies and financial services (FS) in 2025, as we look at the year ahead through our annual Signals Report. 

If 2024 was a year of uncertainty, with hedging on action due to the elections in which over half of the world’s population participated, 2025 is in one sense calmer. The need for brands to communicate value, trust and reward will be carried forward, as consumer spend levels remain under pressure. But with policy direction, taxes and tariffs – both in the UK and in the US – better understood, decisions can now be made.

As FS communication specialists, we continue to act as a barometer for the headwinds of change, as we help brands to transform the world of finance for the better, by helping people to think differently about money. In our Signals Report this year, we’re providing a smart topline on what’s going on and what marketers need to do about it. 

Growth will come from brand fame building activity, explored in Maximising Sponsorship; The Power of Personality; Cracking the Memory Code; Scaling Internationally. 

It will also be through tech-enabled efficiencies, as FS finally realise smoother, more personalised experiences. Read how to make the right leap in: Untangling the Messy Middle; In Data We Trust; AI and Advice isn’t the Answer, it’s the Question. And don’t miss the impact of getting tech right both on a critical audience and via a critical channel, covered in Rethinking Retirement and PR in a New Media Age.

__Let’s get on with it. __

Download the report [here](//downloads.ctfassets.net/sxw14dxmazhg/6BG5pebjty67CF7a8VnEAk/fe62e6890db19c99797987852c736d94/TS_2025_Signals_Report.pdf)

If you’d like to discuss the impact of these signals on your business contact us at [hello@teamspirit.co.uk.](mailto:hello@teamspirit.co.uk)


2025 Signals Report

While winning any award is great, winning for marketing effectiveness has got to be what matters most to marketeers. After all, exceeding KPIs, historic outcomes and delivering strong ROI have got to be the ultimate arbiters of campaign success.

Better still if your marketing effectiveness win is against the biggest names and most innovative brands in financial services.

We were delighted this week, therefore, to win no less than five at the 2024 Financial Services Forum Marketing Effectiveness awards. 

- We won Gold in the Global category for our ‘Invest in the heart of everything’ Biodiversity campaign for Fidelity International. And were also Highly Commended for this in the Most Effective ESG category.
- In the Earned Media category we struck Gold for our ‘Hidden Gems’ campaign for specialist mortgage provider Together, which gained nationwide coverage by mapping and shining a light on the UK’s empty properties and the opportunities they represent.
- We were awarded a Special Judges Award for Most Effective Use of Data and Analytics for The Mortgage Lender, helping them generate coverage and leads in a crowded market.
- And were Highly Commended as Agency of the Year.

### Integration

With effectiveness invariably achieved through the scientific integration of earned, owned and paid-for media, we were also delighted to win six further awards for clients in the international MarComs awards; for Integrated Marketing (for both BUPA and Fidelity), for Advertising (Fidelity), for Media Relations (BUPA) and in both the Social and YouTube video categories. All of the work created and produced by our in-house teams.

### Competing against UK and overseas agencies

To our delight, we also struck Gold again twice last week in the New York based Gramercy Institute Asset Management awards; one in the Public Relations category for our ‘Reaching the Undeserved’ campaign for Charles Stanley, the second for Fidelity international in the Branding category for our innovative ‘Suitably Individual’ strategy, impacting on both investors and their advisers.

With budgets across the board needing to do more, it’s been a great month for being recognised independently for having delivered on the effectiveness clients most crave.

On a mission to transform the world of finance for the better

Our latest work and news