This week has been an interesting one for finance in the UK. Here we will outline some of the major statistics and key points concerning the UK and the financial presumptions of the coming weeks. Read on to see vital information from a variety of different sources and financial establishments within the UK.
An Increase in UK Financial Services Companies Are Using Alternative Data to Improve Decision Making
Two-thirds of financial companies in the UK are becoming progressively more reliant on web scraping alternative data sources. 63% are using alternative data to improve their decision-making process. It has been revealed there has been a huge rise in web scraping for alternative data over the last year. The findings emphasise web scraping and financial transactions as the most popular sources of alternate data for shareholders and financial services firms. Inclusive of ‘non-traditional’ data sources that have not previously been analysed, this includes app downloads and usage metrics, social media sentiment, website traffic statistics, search and other non-traditional data sources. It has become clear that financial services firms are increasingly exploiting alternative data to gain significant, formerly unobserved insights into business performance, market trends and future investment opportunities. Those organisations that are data-driven will be able to quickly convert this valuable alternative data into actionable insights so they can make better calculated decisions.
The UK’s Pension Pot is Far Below Average
Standing at just £42.7k, the UK’s pension pot is far below average at only 18% of the recommended total. More and more individuals are searching for other means of acquiring money in the short term, such as taking out a pay day loan, and it is clear to see why.
A survey has found that the average pension pot in the UK stands at just £42,651, with this figure dropping even further for non-retirees. Those who are yet to retire have only saved an average of £33,809. Pension specialists have recommended that someone retiring at 67 should have at least £237,000 saved for a comfortable future after finishing work, meaning the average British person has only 18% of this.
Ekstasy Launches Starling Bankʼs Latest Integrated Campaign
ʻHello Starling Bankʼ is the newest integrated campaign by Ekstasy, with the aim of drawing attention to the customer-centric humanity that is at the core of it all. They have concentrated on Starling’s application process. The creative adverts will appear out of home, radio and online and will run throughout Summer until the end of September. This new collaborative approach has allowed them to adequately promote a speedy onboarding process through the people they built their bank for. This has been a strategic focus, with the intention of showing there is humanity within all, and is central to, Starlingʼs banking products. As people lead busy lives and banking should, the aim was to allow their customers to know that as an establishment, they will always have time for them no matter the circumstances. All in all, the campaign has been deemed a success.
