Insights

Categories

Can Local Authorities Help Fund Your Housing Association?

Tuesday 12 March 2024

Arlingclose has arranged £400m of lending facilities for housing associations and we’d be pleased to discuss funding transactions or any other arrangements between housing associations and local authorities where our experience and knowledge can be applied.

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Assurance with Your Accounts

Tuesday 05 March 2024

As all local authority accountants will know the upcoming few months can typically be a busy, and sometimes daunting, time. As our clients will be aware Arlingclose are here to provide assistance with some of the most difficult parts: your financial instruments and capital financing requirement calculations.

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Valuing Shares

Tuesday 27 February 2024

How do you calculate the fair value of a share? Arlingclose has many years of experience in valuing a wide variety of shares owned by local authorities.

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Expected Credit Loss Calculations

Tuesday 20 February 2024

Our tried and tested models enable us to form a reasoned and consistently applied judgement as to how likely a borrower is to default and what impact a default would have on expected future cash flows. We are able to calculate an ECL to stand up to audit scrutiny.

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Are UK Financial Markets Safe?

Wednesday 14 February 2024

Last year the Bank announced it was launching its first system-wide exploratory scenario (SWES) exercise to help improve its understanding of how both banks and non-bank financial institutions would behave under severely stressed financial market conditions.

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Are Inflationary Pressures Building?

Thursday 01 February 2024

The recent trend of below consensus UK inflation figures had raised hopes for a rapid loosening in monetary policy in 2024, but the ONS inflation data for December 2023 (published in January) made for less pleasant reading.

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Funding Electric Vehicle Fleet Conversions

Tuesday 23 January 2024

As the electric vehicle market evolves, a growing number of lessors are prepared to take residual value risk on these assets. Is this an efficient way for local authorities to reduce cost and risk as they migrate towards net zero?

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Capital Flexibilities – A Call for Views

Monday 15 January 2024

The government's engagement with local councils on capital resources and borrowing, as announced by the DLUHC, offers fresh perspectives on capital flexibilities and local financial management.

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Different Debt Structures

Monday 08 January 2024

Understand your options: Learn how maturity, annuity, and EIP loans differ in repayment profiles and risk, offering valuable insights for effective financial management.

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The UK's Unique Local Authority

Friday 05 January 2024

The City of London Corporation is the governing body for the City of London, a small area in Central London that is the traditional home of finance services in the UK.

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Triple Bottom Line Reporting

Tuesday 02 January 2024

TBL reporting is a framework that goes beyond traditional financial reporting by considering three key dimensions. So what are the perceived benefits of TBL reporting?

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What are the FCA’s new Sustainability Disclosure Requirements?

Thursday 14 December 2023

Following consultation, on 28th November the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) released its long-awaited policy framework on Sustainability Disclosure Requirements (SDR) and investment labels.

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Time to Revisit Your MRP?

Thursday 30 November 2023

At Arlingclose we believe, as we get into 2024/25 budget setting, there has never been a better time to review your current and future MRP policy.

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The Outlook for Green Gilts

Monday 27 November 2023

Green Gilts, also referred to as Green Bonds, are a type of fixed-income financial instrument. These are issued by government bodies and specifically aim to fund projects tackling climate change, finance infrastructure investment, and create jobs across the country.

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What to expect in the Autumn Statement

Thursday 16 November 2023

What to expect in the Autumn Statement

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It's Strategy Time

Tuesday 14 November 2023

For a small subsection of local authority accountants (the ones that work in treasury management) now is usually the time of year when minds turn to preparing the annual treasury management and related strategies for their organisation.

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What is the UK GfK Consumer Confidence Index?

Wednesday 25 October 2023

In June, we shared insights regarding the GfK Consumer Confidence Index, a monthly barometer published in the UK. Building upon that, we now delve deeper into the questions posed by the index and explore the factors that contributed to a shift in sentiment observed in October.

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Income Strips & Indexed Linked Debt

Tuesday 17 October 2023

Local authorities are increasingly being presented with offers for income strip and inflation-linked debt from various institutions. The article explores why some authorities are opting to exit these agreements prematurely.

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Can I Give a Subsidy?

Thursday 12 October 2023

There might be scenarios where local authorities find it advantageous to offer loans at sub-market rates to certain companies, or perhaps even extend grants. Is such financial support permissible?

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What's going on with Metro Bank?

Wednesday 11 October 2023

Metro Bank launched in 2010 and has been among the most well-known of the so-called challenger banks. What has led to a rescue deal being announced?

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Why Do We Have Two-Tiered Local Government?

Tuesday 03 October 2023

Many but not all parts of England have a two-tiered local government structure. Why do we have this structure?

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ESG Integration

Monday 02 October 2023

In the landscape of finance, the importance of incorporating environmental, social, and governance (ESG) considerations into investment strategies has grown markedly.

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Peak Rate Uncertainty

Friday 29 September 2023

After nearly two years of upward moves in bond yields and wild levels of volatility, have we achieved peak rates?

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Which UK House Price Indicator is Best?

Friday 29 September 2023

Given that each House Price Index draws on different data and varies in methodology, it’s important to consider a few different HPIs.

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What is a Section 5 Report for a Local Authority?

Wednesday 27 September 2023

Birmingham City Council’s City Solicitor and Monitoring Officer issued a Section 5 report last week. What is a section 5 report?

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What is the UK Money Markets Code?

Tuesday 26 September 2023

Developed by the Bank of England, The UK Money Markets Code was first published in 2017 and established high level principles of appropriate standards to ensure trust exists between a diverse set of participants.

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Section 114 notices – who will be next?

Friday 22 September 2023

Birmingham City Council is the largest and most high profile of the six local authorities to have issued a section 114 notice since 2018. Perhaps unsurprisingly, there is now some speculation in the national press over who will be next.

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Electric Vehicles, Salary Sacrifice, IFRS 16 and Scotland

Friday 15 September 2023

Many climate-conscious employers have taken advantage of a government-backed scheme to provide their staff with electric vehicles.

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Social Impact Bonds

Thursday 14 September 2023

SIBs are a form of partnership in which investors provide upfront funding for a social program where their return on investment is linked to certain predetermined performance targets.

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The Outlook for UK Commercial Property

Wednesday 13 September 2023

The UK's commercial property sector is facing a significant sell-off, investors and asset managers are grappling with the complex task of valuing their portfolios in this shifting landscape.

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What does Birmingham City Council’s Section 114 Notice Mean for the Local to Local Lending Market?

Tuesday 12 September 2023

The biggest local authority in the country is in financial difficulty, and so it is not unreasonable to ask how this might impact the local-to-local lending market.

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Why do Section 114 notices happen?

Friday 08 September 2023

Why do Section 114 notices happen?

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Why Local Authorities Really Matter

Wednesday 06 September 2023

Aside from administrative functions local authorities are also crucial for some other really important things: like how likely you are to die younger than you should.

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Why do I have a pension asset?

Wednesday 09 August 2023

This year a number of local authorities have a pension asset on their balance sheet rather than a pension liability. What does this pension asset mean in practice and why has this started to occur now?

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What is the VIX?

Tuesday 08 August 2023

The Cboe Volatility Index – better known by its ticker ‘VIX’, is a financial benchmark devised to act as a live market estimate of the expected volatility of the S&P 500 Index.

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Do Credit Ratings include ESG?

Friday 04 August 2023

Credit ratings and ESG ratings are different products. But do ESG risks influence credit ratings and are the main rating agencies building these into their credit assessments?

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European Commission’s assessment of Money Market Funds’ resilience

Wednesday 02 August 2023

The European Commission recently published its long-overdue review of Money Market Fund (MMF) regulation in Europe on the adequacy of MMF regulation from a prudential and economic point of view.

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The First Subsidy Control Regime Judgement

Tuesday 01 August 2023

The Competition Appeal Tribunal has made its First Subsidy Control Regime Judgement

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How Regulators Failed to Stop Local Government Failures

Monday 24 July 2023

Section 114 notices used to be a rare occurrence but a handful have been issued in the last two years and it is expected that there will be more to come.

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Parish Council Investment Advice

Thursday 20 July 2023

With market volatility continuing to fluctuate and short-term interest rates rapidly rising, it may be time to reassess your bank balances and short-term investments for security, liquidity and yield.

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Arlingclose Investment Benchmarking June 2023

Tuesday 18 July 2023

Another quarterly Arlingclose Investment Benchmarking has rolled around and some dramatic changes are afoot.

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UK Bank Stress Test Results

Thursday 13 July 2023

The results of the latest Bank of England stress tests on UK Banks have now been published and are summarised in this insight.

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Managing LOBO Calls

Wednesday 28 June 2023

As interest rates rise, an increasing number of local authority LOBO loans are being “called” by lenders. The value of options, and risk relating to these loans, must also be considered when reviewing restructuring or repayment scenarios; you can’t directly compare against a fixed rate loan.

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Reduce Risk with Secured Deposits

Tuesday 27 June 2023

With a simple signup process, increased security, bail-in exemption and a higher yield to top it off, secured deposits offer a competitive option for investment when looking to shore up unsecured investment balances.

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Low Cost Funding and Interest Rate Risk Management

Tuesday 27 June 2023

In April 2020 Arlingclose worked with one of its local authority clients to transact an Interest Rate Swap (Swap) which locked in a rate of 0.56% on £75million of funding for a period of 20 years.

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PWLB Reduced HRA Lending Margin

Monday 26 June 2023

The PWLB has recently announced a reduction in the margin applied to loans that will be used to fund capital expenditure within the Housing Revenue Account (HRA).

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Is Engagement or Exclusion better for ESG?

Friday 23 June 2023

One area that has seen lots of attention is the growth in ESG funds or the incorporation of ESG into existing funds’ strategies and the terms exclusions and engagement are often thrown around in this conversation. But is one better than the other?

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Why is inflation so persistent?

Wednesday 21 June 2023

Is persistent inflation here to stay?

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Financial problems in Guizhou

Tuesday 20 June 2023

Local authorities in other countries can get into financial difficulties too. It’s not just Woking, Thurrock, Slough and Croydon that have been making headlines recently. Guizhou, a region in China, has been in the press over concerns about high debt levels, a likelihood of default and the possibility of a bail-out from the central government in Beijing.

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New Secured Deposit Service

Monday 19 June 2023

We are proud to announce that we have successfully supported the trading of secured deposits in collaboration with the innovative fintech Consort1, along with Clearstream, Standard Chartered Bank, NatWest, Alpha Group, and BankClarity, with Gloucestershire County Council being among the first UK local authorities to utilise the new service.

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What’s your opinion of local authority accounts?

Monday 19 June 2023

A product of the audit process is for an independent assessment on the financial statements of an organisation to express an opinion on their fairness and compliance with applicable accounting principles, which is given through the auditor’s opinion.

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Active vs Passive Investing?

Thursday 15 June 2023

Given the challenge presented by the last few years, are we any closer to settling the perennial active versus passive debate?

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Auditing Local Authority Accounts

Friday 09 June 2023

The crisis in the audit of local authority accounts has been widely publicised with the Department for Levelling Up Housing and Communities (DLUHC) currently carrying out an inquiry into the current backlog that exists. What changes could be made?

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Accounting for Fair Value through Other Comprehensive Income

Wednesday 07 June 2023

Back in April the IFRS 9 Statutory Override was extended for a further two years. Should the Government and the accounting standard setters apply FVOCI as the way to account for these instruments going forward?

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What is the Consumer Confidence Index?

Tuesday 06 June 2023

The GfK Consumer Confidence indicator in the UK rose to -27 in May 2023 from -30 in April, improving for the fourth consecutive month. However, the index remained below its long-term average, suggesting that a clear majority of respondents continued to report low confidence, in line with data pointing to falling UK retail sales.

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How to Implement IFRS 16?

Tuesday 30 May 2023

IFRS 16 – Just as you thought it was safe to have a holiday!

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What do rising construction costs mean for local authorities?

Friday 26 May 2023

The last year has seen one of the highest periods of construction price inflation on record.

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What is the Outlook for UK Public Finances?

Thursday 25 May 2023

Borrowing reached its highest point in March 2021 before it began to ease over the remainder of the year and through 2022 into 2023. However, recent months have seen this begin to worsen once again as the government is forced to borrow to support energy prices amid the cost-of-living crisis.

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Should You Dollar Cost Average?

Wednesday 24 May 2023

Dollar cost averaging is not a strategy for deciding what to invest in; rather, it can help you take the stress out of deciding when to invest. Using it as part of a comprehensive financial plan that includes a diversified mix of asset classes can help track, plan, and reduce risk regardless of what's happening in the market.

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Is ESG Over?

Wednesday 17 May 2023

ESG investing is moving from an early phase into something more sophisticated where investors will be challenged to really interrogate what they believe, rather than undertaking a tick box exercise.

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An Updated History of Base Rate

Tuesday 16 May 2023

Can we expect a return of the sky-high-rates of the 1980s, or a more placid range of about 2% - 6% for the foreseeable future?

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Slower money growth, slower inflation?

Monday 15 May 2023

What does easing money growth mean for inflation.

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Why does the US debt ceiling matter?

Friday 12 May 2023

Over the past few years, we've become accustomed to hearing about the political tussles around the US debt ceiling, and the stand-off and brinkmanship to raise its level.

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Are UK Banks Safe?

Wednesday 10 May 2023

It’s clear the banking system has been strained in recent weeks, particularly in the US. Can we bank on the banks? (Part 4)

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What is the IMF's Outlook for UK Interest Rates?

Friday 14 April 2023

IMF suggests a likely return of real interest rates to pre-pandemic levels.

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What are the new UK Subsidy Rules?

Wednesday 12 April 2023

The Subsidy Control Act 2022 came into effect on 4th January 2023 replacing EU State Aid rules. This sets out the framework under which local authorities should award subsidies going forward.

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iDealTrade 10 Best Features - Trade Differently

Tuesday 11 April 2023

Need to free-up more time in your day? Perhaps it’s time you made the switch to online trading for your “local to local” transactions. iDealTrade is an online, automated, matching platform for local authority deposits and loans.

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Lessons from 30 Years of Attempting to Devolve Power in the UK

Tuesday 04 April 2023

A report by the Institute for Government looks at the lessons from 30 years of attempting to devolve power in the UK. It raises some interesting themes and tries to find some practical solutions to this perennial problem.

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Impact Investing

Tuesday 28 March 2023

Impact investments are those with strategies that aim to generate both, financial returns and positive, measurable societal or environmental impact.

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Lower Risk Bank Deposits

Thursday 23 March 2023

Lower Risk Bank Deposits

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How recently have you reviewed your TMPs?

Thursday 23 March 2023

When did you last review your Treasury Management Practices (TMP) document? You may be aware - or even surprised – that it has been a while since you last did so.

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Housing Association Funding Arrangements

Wednesday 15 March 2023

Arlingclose secures £400m for housing associations, with flexible solutions tailored to meet unique needs. Discover how we can alleviate your funding challenges, while making a positive impact on society.

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What Happened to Silicon Valley Bank?

Monday 13 March 2023

Silicon Valley Bank, a specialist US lender to the tech sector, has slumped from being a highly regarded and rated bank to financial failure within a week.

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Fair Weather Localism

Tuesday 28 February 2023

What are the typical arguments for localism and what needs to be considered?

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Back to Basics: Covered Bonds

Monday 27 February 2023

The relative safety and stability of covered bonds compared to other types of bonds may make them an attractive option for investors seeking a relatively safe investment.

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Help with Your Year End Accounts

Thursday 16 February 2023

Arlingclose can provide bespoke assistance where needed with individual aspects of your accounts. Our services includes ECL and Fair Value Calculations, Accounts Assurance, support with preparation, in depth assistance with soft loan accounting, lease accounting, debt restructuring or other notoriously tricky areas.

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The IMF World Economic Outlook

Thursday 02 February 2023

Can the IMF World Economic Outlook Report really be trusted?

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Tipping Point?

Wednesday 01 February 2023

Like a stereotypical romcom, the global economy appears to be in a will it, won’t it phase. Rather than being romantic entanglement, the subject of this particular situation is, of course, recession.

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Cold Weather - Warm Returns?

Friday 06 January 2023

As we leave the Christmas period behind us and start the new year, it seems like a good time to reflect on the phenomenon commonly known as the “Santa Claus Rally” and “January Effect”.

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When Pubs Replaced Banks

Wednesday 04 January 2023

What happened when pubs replaced banks in Ireland in the 1970's

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The Bonds are Back in Town

Thursday 22 December 2022

The historically low interest rates of the last decade have kept many investors out of the fixed income markets. However, in recent months we have seen consecutive interest rate hikes meaning that bond yields are becoming more attractive to investors once again.

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Inflation - Written in the Mars?

Wednesday 21 December 2022

An inflation index is a tool used to measure price changes over time in an economy, but what can a Mars Bar tell us?

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The (Asset) Class of 2022

Tuesday 20 December 2022

A summary of asset class performances in the year 2022.

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What to Call the PWLB

Wednesday 07 December 2022

What is the history of the PWLB lending facility?

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Counterparty Goals

Tuesday 06 December 2022

World Cup controversies have raised questions for some treasurers. Arlingclose’s counterparty service has always considered more than just credit ratings.

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Does Scotland get a Raw Deal on Debt Refinancing?

Wednesday 23 November 2022

Over recent years Arlingclose has worked with many authorities on debt refinancing transactions, often involving a premature repayment premium, but resulting in beneficial savings and risk reduction. However, we’ve seen limited activity in Scotland due to the different rules on accounting for premiums.

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Service Concession Flexibility

Tuesday 22 November 2022

The Scottish Government has introduced flexible accounting arrangements for local authorities that are the grantor in service concession arrangements, including private finance initiative and similar schemes.

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Pre-paying Debt to the PWLB

Thursday 10 November 2022

Pre-paying debt to the PWLB could lead to savings, if done correctly

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FCA Proposes Rules for Sustainable Funds to Tackle Greenwashing

Wednesday 09 November 2022

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has launched a consultation on proposed measures to clamp down on “greenwashing” of investment funds and products.

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The Bankruptcy of Detroit: Part 3

Tuesday 08 November 2022

In the final part of our series we ask why it almost certainly wouldn't happen here?

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The Bankruptcy of Detroit: Part 2

Tuesday 01 November 2022

In the second of a three part series we ask how can a whole city go bankrupt?

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The Bankruptcy of Detroit: Part 1

Tuesday 25 October 2022

Put Your Hands Up for Detroit. In the first of a three part series we look at the USA’s largest ever municipal bankruptcy.

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PWLB Certainty Rate Has Changed a Lot

Thursday 13 October 2022

PWLB Rates have increased, but the scale and speed of the increase has shocked most borrowers

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The Customer is Always Right

Tuesday 27 September 2022

The Government’s customer when it comes to financing is the capital markets. We’re currently witnessing a rather significant rerating of the customer’s expectations with regard to the price of the product on offer.

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A Change in Policy

Wednesday 21 September 2022

Are rate hikes necessary to tame inflation or are monetary policymakers getting carried away?

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Cracking the Code(s of Practice)

Tuesday 20 September 2022

Local Authorities will soon be updating their strategy documentation which will need to reflect changes in the CIPFA Prudential and TM Codes

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How Do ESG Strategies Differ?

Tuesday 13 September 2022

ESG investment policies, strategies and approaches aren’t one-size-fits-all.

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Funding in a Volatile Market – A Case Study and 10 Top Tips

Tuesday 13 September 2022

How do successful treasury managers navigate current rate volatility and mitigate rising interest costs? In this insight we set out how we have helped one of our London Borough clients achieve a low-cost debt portfolio.

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Multi-Asset Investing and Inflation

Thursday 08 September 2022

The ability of multi-asset funds to actively invest across asset classes may offer some help by the fund manager being able to seek out and, hopefully, take advantage of opportunities where those assets can provide a degree of protection and therefore take less of a hit to those all-important returns.

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Big Brother is Watching You

Wednesday 07 September 2022

The PWLB is here to stay but the scrutiny it now places on applications for funding has increased. Failure to comply will trigger a number of sanctions which are costly and best avoided.

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How long will gilt shocks continue?

Tuesday 06 September 2022

Is credibility in gilt markets eroding?

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Placing your Truss in the Bank of England

Tuesday 06 September 2022

Economic Policies under Truss

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Are Banks Prepared for Climate Change?

Tuesday 23 August 2022

The Bank of England tested the UK’s largest banks and insurers on how prepared they are for financial risks caused by climate change.

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Local Authority Creditworthiness

Monday 15 August 2022

Why carry out analysis on local authorities, is it worth the time and effort?

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The Glorious 31st

Thursday 11 August 2022

If you want to understand your local authority’s financial position which bits of the accounts should you focus on?

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Derive Some Benefits

Thursday 11 August 2022

Derivatives don’t appear in many local authority portfolios. Used properly, they are excellent risk management tools, but they can be unfamiliar and a little more complicated. Nonetheless, some local authorities are taking advantage of derivatives indirectly through investments in certain pooled funds.

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A Guarantee of Success?

Tuesday 09 August 2022

Some authorities have looked at ways of undertaking planned projects whilst complying with the new rules, and one way of doing this is by obtaining third party loans for their subsidiaries, rather than lending the companies the money themselves.

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Taxing Borrowing?

Thursday 28 July 2022

They say everything comes back into fashion and this seems to be the case in terms of the control of local authority capital spend.

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A Roundup of Public Finance Live 2022

Friday 15 July 2022

After a long two years of few ‘in real life’ meetings, the Arlingclose team were keen to get in front of clients and non-clients alike, at Public Finance Live 2022.

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Prepayment Possibilities?

Thursday 14 July 2022

Prepayment Possibilities?

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Political Turmoil, Relief and Gilt Yields

Tuesday 12 July 2022

Political Turmoil, Relief and Gilt Yields

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FCA moves to widen regulatory remit to ESG Data and Rating Providers

Monday 11 July 2022

FCA moves to widen regulatory remit to ESG Data and Rating Providers

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The penny drops, but will it be sustained?

Tuesday 05 July 2022

The penny drops, but will it be sustained?

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Interest Rate Uncertainty and the MPC’s New Member

Friday 01 July 2022

Interest Rate Uncertainty and the MPC’s New Member

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Regulators Get Tough on Greenwashing

Thursday 30 June 2022

Regulators are stepping up their scrutiny over sustainability claims.

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Arlingclose advises on LOBO refinancing for Braintree District Council

Tuesday 21 June 2022

Braintree District Council (BDC) has recently completed prepayment of its LOBO loans. The existing debt, running at an average interest rate of 4.7% over 40 years, was replaced using a combination of new funding and existing cash resources.

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Can we bank on the banks? Part 3.

Tuesday 21 June 2022

Earlier this month the Bank of England published its first resolvability assessment of major UK banks. The report is part of its Resolvability Assessment Framework which the Bank, as the resolution authority, undertakes to evaluate whether banks can fail in an orderly way.

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Minimum Revenue Provision on Capital Loans

Monday 20 June 2022

DLUHC has issued an interim response to its November consultation on MRP.

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What are Credit Default Swaps?

Monday 13 June 2022

Analysing and assessing the financial strength of an institution, be it a bank, a corporate or a sovereign, requires more than just relying on credit ratings. For some time now Credit Default Swaps (CDS) have been used as an additional indicator of risk alongside other measures.

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The Not So Dismal Science

Wednesday 08 June 2022

Are economists too pessimistic?

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Arlingclose advises on £73m medium term loan facilities for Optivo Housing Association

Monday 30 May 2022

Arlingclose is delighted to have arranged a £73m revolving credit facility for the London-based housing association Optivo, funded by UK local authorities.

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Green Bonds and Sustainability-Linked Bonds – What’s the Distinction?

Friday 27 May 2022

Whether the bond is issued as ‘green’ or ‘sustainability-linked’, the servicing of debt, both coupon payment and principal repayment, remains the responsibility of the issuing entity and thorough credit analysis should not be overlooked.

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Local Authority Counterparty Risk

Friday 20 May 2022

The last couple of weeks have been a reminder that, when looking at counterparty and credit risk, the UK’s 500 local authorities are not all the same.

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Potential MMF Regulatory Reform – where are we now?

Monday 16 May 2022

A regulatory review is due and we noted last year that further rule changes could be on the horizon, driven by the market stresses experienced in March 2020 with the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.

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Great (Capital Market) Expectations

Tuesday 03 May 2022

Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future returns, or so goes the ubiquitous statement on much investment-related material. Despite this, past performance is often (always?) used by many investors as at least a general guide to what the future may bring.

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The only way is up?

Friday 22 April 2022

There is no doubt about it, bond yields are under significant pressure. They have relentlessly marched higher, driven by both inflation and monetary policy concerns. So, what has changed? The inflation outlook has been known for some time, so why are yields continuing to price in ever higher premiums?

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iDealTrade - Trading on your Terms

Thursday 07 April 2022

One of the key advantages of iDealTrade is that it allows you to be a market maker when you have specific requirements for your funding. A District Council's recent success highlights this.

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Fix Now, Loan Later

Wednesday 06 April 2022

Notable savings have been achieved through forward starting loans with private lenders

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MRP – Is it time to review what you do?

Monday 14 March 2022

The recent consultation to changes in the Minimum Revenue Provision regime in England has now closed and has prompted criticism of some of the more extreme approaches taken by local authorities in terms of MRP policy.

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Cryptocurrency Due Diligence

Wednesday 09 March 2022

The cryptocurrency market is now hard to ignore. Cryptoassets like Bitcoin have been growing in popularity in the last decade, becoming increasingly mainstream.

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There’s Still a Pandemic and it’s Financial Year End Again…

Monday 31 January 2022

Arlingclose is able to provide assistance in the preparation of year end accounts.

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Back to the Old School

Monday 24 January 2022

At Arlingclose we are constantly striving to bring added value services to our clients and to do them as efficiently and effectively as possible.

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What is an LEI Number?

Wednesday 19 January 2022

An LEI number is a ‘Legal Entity Identifier’ that has been required since 3rd January 2018 for any legal entities (excluding individuals) that buy or sell exchanged traded financial instruments.

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The ESG ratings challenge

Wednesday 22 December 2021

What should investors relying on ESG ratings or data and wishing to better understand the inherent long-term risks and opportunities in their investments bear in mind?

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LOBOs: The Secrets of Successful Refinancing

Monday 13 December 2021

The past few years have seen a resurgence in debt refinancing as authorities look for ways to make savings and run a more efficient debt portfolio in line with their projected borrowing requirement

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A Local Taxation Tale of Two Cities

Friday 10 December 2021

If you want more localism you have to pay for it

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QE goes green

Thursday 09 December 2021

The Bank of England is ‘greening’ its corporate bond purchases to support the transition to net zero

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Arlingclose advise on £65m LOBO refinancing for Liverpool City Council

Wednesday 01 December 2021

Liverpool City Council (LCC) has successfully arranged the refinancing of £65m of Lender’s Option Borrower’s Option (LOBO) debt.

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Can it Pay to be Passive?

Friday 26 November 2021

The debate about whether, on average, active managers offer value for money in terms of generating outperformance, or ‘alpha’, continues and most definitely shows no signs of stopping.

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Arlingclose advise Suffolk County Council on LOBO Refinancing

Tuesday 23 November 2021

As Suffolk County Council closes the deal on their LOBO refinancing, David Blake examines the advantages of these transactions.

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Setting rates in the 'local to local' lending market

Tuesday 16 November 2021

In this note we explore price transparency, supply and demand dynamics and the benefits of screen-based trading.

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Carbon and Climate Statement

Thursday 11 November 2021

As COP26 comes to an end in Glasgow we hope progress will be made in the fight against climate change. At this point Arlingclose is pleased to announce that we have in our own way made a transition to net zero.

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Prudential Code Discussion with Room151

Thursday 28 October 2021

Mark Swallow and David Green, Directors at Arlingclose, contribute to an informative panel debate with room151 on the draft prudential code, featuring Richard Lloyd Bithell, Senior Technical Manager at CIPFA, Martin Easton, co-auther of the draft code and Luke Webster, chair of CIPFA’s Treasury Management panel.

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Financial Investments - a case of mistaken identity?

Wednesday 27 October 2021

David Blake, director at Arlingclose, writes for room151 on the draft prudential code. Financial Investments get a rough ride in the draft Prudential Code, which appears to suggest local authorities should target zero cash balances, here he sets out why strategic investment should retain their place as part of prudent treasury management strategy.

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COP26 - Cutting through the thicket of terms and acronyms

Wednesday 27 October 2021

Postponed from last year, COP26 under the UK’s presidency will commence in Glasgow on 1st November 2021 with a world leaders’ summit and end on 12th November.

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The Liability Benchmark

Thursday 21 October 2021

One of the key changes to the Treasury Management Code will be the requirement for local authorities to prepare a Liability Benchmark, something we at Arlingclose have been preparing for our clients for over a decade.

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Proportionality is hardly new...

Thursday 14 October 2021

CIPFA’s new Prudential Code will include proportionality as a key objective for the first time. But for treasury managers, proportionality has always been a key principle for their roles.

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Borrowing Strategy takes Centre Stage in Code Updates

Tuesday 05 October 2021

With summer drawing to a close, minds turn toward the remaining months of 2021 and what lies ahead. Some may already be thinking of December’s festivities, but it will also be a month of particular interest to local authority treasurers, as it’s expected to bring the publication by CIPFA of revisions to the Prudential Code for Capital Finance and the Treasury Management Code of Practice.

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The UK’s Inaugural Green Gilt Issue

Friday 24 September 2021

The UK government issued the first "Green Gilt" this week, a step in the right direction to achieve net zero by 2050.

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Why the Government’s Covid Debt Burden is Not Actually that Bad

Friday 17 September 2021

Other than the obvious worry of death and disease one of the main things concerning everyone throughout the pandemic has been the effect on the economy.

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Demystifying the CFR

Thursday 16 September 2021

Join Stephen Kitching as he discusses the CFR.

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Beware the Perils of Greenwashing

Wednesday 01 September 2021

Greenwashing is a compound word coined from ‘green sheen’ and ‘white washing’ describing the making of unsubstantiated or misleading claims about environmental benefits.

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Revised HM Treasury PWLB Guidance

Tuesday 24 August 2021

A second chance to listen to the next instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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PFI Projects & LIBOR Transition

Tuesday 10 August 2021

With the replacement of LIBOR rapidly approaching, David Blake examines how this may affect Private Finance Initiatives which reference the benchmark.

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Liability Benchmark Explained

Tuesday 10 August 2021

Join Laura Fallon as she explains the ins and outs of liability benchmarks.

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The Five Case Model - A Template for Local Authorities' Project Business Cases?

Thursday 05 August 2021

The G20 Five Case Model impact on Public Sector project decision making

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KYLAC: Know Your Local Authority Counterparty

Tuesday 03 August 2021

While a section 114 notice is a clear indication of financial distress, the existence of this procedure underlines the strength of the local government financial framework.

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Prudential Code Consultation Update

Thursday 29 July 2021

Join David Green and Stephen Kitching as they discuss the latest updates from the CIPFA Prudential Code Consultation.

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All about that base?

Thursday 29 July 2021

Average earnings growth is soaring – but needs to be interpreted with caution.

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Providing Affordable Housing with Income Strip Solutions

Thursday 22 July 2021

A second chance to listen to the next instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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Can’t Get the Staff

Wednesday 21 July 2021

One of the fears at the beginning of the pandemic was that of mass unemployment as businesses across the country were forced to close their doors. Now as the economy reopens all we are hearing is a clamour from businesses saying that they can’t find enough staff. What has caused this about-turn in circumstances?

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Can we bank on the banks? Part 2.

Monday 19 July 2021

Following being hit with a £91m fine, Lloyds Bank has helped bring how banks treat their customers into the credit mix.

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Technology in Treasury with ICD

Friday 16 July 2021

A second chance to listen to the next instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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IFRS 16 Transition - Lessons from the Private Sector

Friday 09 July 2021

A second chance to listen to the next instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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Managing Credit Risk

Wednesday 07 July 2021

The huge shocks to financial markets over the last year have highlighted the importance of a robust credit analysis process and can create a good opportunity to consider how these processes can be improved.

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Local Authorities and ESG – a Match Made in Heaven?

Monday 05 July 2021

Government borrowing statistics for March 2021 showed that local authorities have lent over £14bn to their peers, raising an interesting question, how “ESG” is a local authority?

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Investing in the Local Economy with 31ten Consulting

Friday 02 July 2021

A second chance to listen to the next instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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Parish Councils: Borrowing for Capital Purposes

Friday 02 July 2021

For more information on parish and town council borrowing advice, please contact the Arlingclose team.

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The UK Infrastructure Bank

Monday 28 June 2021

The UK Infrastructure Bank (UKIB), headquartered in Leeds, opened to UK businesses this month.

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The Current Credit Environment

Friday 25 June 2021

A second chance to listen to the next instalment of the #TrendingTreasury webcast series

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Income Strips Explained

Thursday 10 June 2021

A second chance to listen to the next instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series with M&G

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Parish Councils: Long-term Investing

Wednesday 09 June 2021

Find out how Arlingclose can assist Parish and Town Councils with investment advice.

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Welsh Local Authorities to Get the General Power of Competence

Thursday 03 June 2021

So, what exactly is the general power of competence and what will it mean for these local authorities?

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ESG in Fund Management with Vanguard

Wednesday 02 June 2021

A second chance to listen to the next instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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Market Monetary Policy Jitters

Wednesday 02 June 2021

There’s no doubt about it, there’s a jittery mood in financial markets, causing flip flopping behaviour in equities, bonds, commodities and even Bitcoin.

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Sustainability-Linked Bonds

Tuesday 25 May 2021

A German bank shows the way. The innovative deal has set a high bar for meaningful ESG targets and approaches to sustainability.

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More MMF rule changes on the way?

Tuesday 25 May 2021

Regulators are looking to update MMF rules once again.

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Reviewing the Subsidy Regime Consultation

Friday 21 May 2021

A second chance to listen to this recent instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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Boosting the Local Area: Managing Investments in Borough

Thursday 20 May 2021

A second chance to listen to the next instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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Parish Councils: are your deposits protected?

Monday 17 May 2021

For more information on how to protect your investment portfolio, please contact the Arlingclose team.

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Our Interest Rate Forecast Explained

Thursday 13 May 2021

A second chance to listen to the next instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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Press Release

Wednesday 12 May 2021

Arlingclose Becomes an Employee-Owned Company

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ESG in Practice at Arlingclose

Tuesday 11 May 2021

ESG in Practice at Arlingclose

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PWLB Alternatives Webcast

Friday 30 April 2021

A second chance to listen to the next instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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Which REITs should Local Authorities Invest in?

Thursday 29 April 2021

How Local Authorities Should be Investing in REITs

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To Benchmark, Or Not To Benchmark?

Monday 26 April 2021

How should you assess the relative performance of your investment portfolio?

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The Different Types of Money Market Funds

Friday 23 April 2021

LVNAV, VNAV, CNAV? A refresher of the differences

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Year-End Local Authority Borrowing

Monday 19 April 2021

March is traditionally a bumper month for local authority borrowing, as cash runs out and spending increases during the last quarter. The pandemic and the changes to the PWLB margins prompted a very different March 2021.

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Registered Provider & Local Authority Credit with Fitch Ratings Webcast

Friday 16 April 2021

A second chance to listen to the next instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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Liability Benchmarking

Friday 16 April 2021

Over the last two years Arlingclose has been able to put together all of the liability benchmarks for our clients.

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The National Infrastructure Bank

Friday 09 April 2021

A second chance to listen to the next instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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Our Response to the Prudential Code Consultation Webcast

Tuesday 06 April 2021

A second chance to listen to the next instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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Sustainable Finance Disclosures Regulation (SFDR)

Wednesday 31 March 2021

SFDR - a key pillar of the European Union's ESG initiatives and yet another acronym inhabiting this space

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ESG Bonds

Tuesday 30 March 2021

Is your capital programme ESG friendly?

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The Outlook for Commercial Property Webcast

Monday 29 March 2021

A second chance to listen to the next instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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Support Underpins Local Authority Credit Quality

Monday 29 March 2021

Recent “capitalisation directions” provide further evidence of central government support for local authorities.

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Capitalisation Direction

Tuesday 23 March 2021

The recent news on the capitalisation direction issued to Nottingham City Council brings the tally of directions granted to local authorities at just under £150million with more set to be announced over the coming weeks.

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Green Bonds & ESG Borrowing Webcast

Monday 22 March 2021

A second chance to listen to the next instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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Greensill Bank Collapse

Monday 22 March 2021

A cautionary tale for local authorities as German local authorities may face significant investment losses

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LOBO Judgement Calls

Tuesday 16 March 2021

A couple of weeks ago another chapter of the long-running LOBO saga seemingly came to an end.

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Investing in Housing Associations Webcast

Friday 12 March 2021

A second chance to listen to the next instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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What are the Alternatives?

Friday 12 March 2021

The range of so-called ‘alternative’ asset classes is wide, from funds using diverse strategies outside of the more traditional approaches along style, size, or geographical lines, to investing in art or wine, or using private equity and hedge funds.

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Impact of the UK Budget 2021 Webcast

Monday 08 March 2021

A second chance to listen to the last instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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The Census 2021

Monday 08 March 2021

What is the point of a census?

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Scratching Your Head Over Year End?

Monday 01 March 2021

Find out how Arlingclose can assist you at this financial year end

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Housing Revenue Account

Friday 26 February 2021

Everything comes back into fashion - The re-emergence of the HRA

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Multi Asset Investing Webcast

Thursday 25 February 2021

A second chance to listen to the next instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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Treasury Management Practices

Monday 22 February 2021

Tempted to review your TMPs?

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Prudential Code Consultation

Friday 19 February 2021

A second chance to listen to the next instalment of the #TrendingTreasury webcast series

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Counterparty Due Diligence

Friday 19 February 2021

This insight highlights the importance of performing detailed due diligence and also takes a look at what is happening with State Aid now that the UK has formally withdrawn from the EU

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Goals for the World

Tuesday 16 February 2021

What are the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and why are investors thinking about them?

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Local Authority Credit Webcast

Monday 15 February 2021

A second chance to listen to this instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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How to predict Bank Rate

Friday 12 February 2021

Using market forward curves isn't a substitute for a good forecast

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Revision to the Prudential Code – A method of Capital Control?

Monday 08 February 2021

Last week CIPFA published consultation on its latest proposed changes which would see the sixth amendment since the introduction of the Code back in 2004

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Future for Money Market Funds Webcast

Thursday 04 February 2021

A second chance to listen to the next instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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The S Factor

Monday 01 February 2021

Which investment strategy is right for you?

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Accounts Closedown Themes for 2021 Webcast

Thursday 21 January 2021

A second chance to listen to the next instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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Investment Benchmarking

Thursday 21 January 2021

Take a deeper look into our quarterly investment benchmarking.

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What Chance Inflation?

Wednesday 20 January 2021

Global inflation expectations have risen since the turn of the year, driven by a culmination of factors, on both the demand and supply sides.

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Britain and Europe 2021 Webcast

Monday 18 January 2021

A second chance to listen to the next instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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An Independent Review of the Local Government Finance Settlement

Friday 15 January 2021

The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) were hard at work in the run to Christmas and published an independent assessment of the latest Local Government Finance Settlement in England on 21st December.

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2021 Preview Webcast

Monday 11 January 2021

A second chance to listen to the latest instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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Free Revenue Saving Assessment!

Tuesday 05 January 2021

On the hunt for revenue savings? Over the past few months Arlingclose has worked with several authorities, helping them unlock multi-million-pound savings.

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Stewardship – Investors Can Set the Course

Tuesday 05 January 2021

Stewardship is a powerful tool investors have at their disposal to encourage the listed entities they are invested in to develop more sustainable business practices and deliver substantial real change which also benefits stakeholders and wider society.

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PWLB Guidance: Navigating the New Rules

Tuesday 05 January 2021

Following the introduction of HM Treasury’s PWLB Guidance, incorporating restrictions on access and a revised process, borrowing from the PWLB may now be more complicated. Arlingclose provide an overview of some of the key considerations.

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Ways to Help Alleviate Your Covid-19 Budgetary Woes

Monday 04 January 2021

This article suggests some of the less painful steps local authorities can take towards closing the budget gap.

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Greenwashing - do your investments have brown undertones?

Friday 18 December 2020

Your investments may seem to tick all the right ESG boxes, but have you fallen into the trap of "greenwashing"?

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Stressed about Climate Change?

Tuesday 15 December 2020

Next year the Bank of England will become the first central bank to carry out detailed climate stress testing

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PWLB Consultation Outcome Webcast

Wednesday 09 December 2020

A second chance to listen to this week's instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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6 reasons why Electronic Trading is here to stay

Monday 07 December 2020

Electronic trading has been around for many years it has grown in popularity during a year that has been gripped by a pandemic.

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PWLB Policy - Finding Strength in Adversity

Monday 30 November 2020

Last week we saw the implementation of HM Treasury’s long-anticipated consultation response, but what lessons have been learnt from a year in the wilderness?

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The Economics of Lurking at Home

Friday 27 November 2020

What are the impacts of the increase in remote working?

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Better Forecasting in the Public Sector Webcast

Thursday 26 November 2020

A second chance to listen to this week's instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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Allocations are Forever

Thursday 26 November 2020

The strategic asset allocation decision is a key one in the investment process

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Statutory Overrides

Tuesday 24 November 2020

Local government benefits from several statutory overrides

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Market Update Webcast

Friday 20 November 2020

A second chance to listen to this week's instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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High mortgage rates in a low interest rate environment

Monday 16 November 2020

Why are we seeing a continual rise in mortgage rates despite the Bank of England’s efforts to keep underlying rates low?

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The vaccine has landed: All is well

Thursday 12 November 2020

The possibility of a vaccine is a real cause for optimism, but how much has it changed the outlook for the economy?

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Layering your Investments

Tuesday 10 November 2020

Investment portfolios are like onions. How? They both have layers!

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From 'V' to 'W'

Friday 06 November 2020

What is the projected path for UK economic recovery?

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US Election Result Special Webcast

Thursday 05 November 2020

A second chance to listen to this week's instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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US Election Day

Tuesday 03 November 2020

With 538 electoral college votes for grabs from 50 states (plus The District of Columbia), the electoral system might be slightly confusing, but what is at stake isn’t; like it or not the winner will set the agenda of the entire world for the next four years.

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Low Risk But Not Risk Free

Friday 30 October 2020

Money Market Funds are a very low risk investment option due to their liquidity and diversification but with market volatility rising and yields falling investors should not become complacent.

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What is SONIA?

Monday 26 October 2020

LIBOR looks set to disappear and new investment, borrowing and hedging products, such as interest rate swaps, are already being based on SONIA, so a good understanding of the rate is necessary.

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Local Authority Derivatives – Regulatory Framework

Thursday 22 October 2020

A recent local authority interest rate swap transaction, developed by Arlingclose and believed to be the first of its kind in over thirty years, has reignited the debate around power to use derivatives. In this note we set out the legal and regulatory background to local authority use of derivatives.

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Quantum of Tolerance

Thursday 22 October 2020

Assessing risk tolerance is no easy task and requires a variety of both objective and subjective judgements.

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An Interest in Swaps Webcast

Thursday 22 October 2020

A second chance to listen to this week's instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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Minimum Revenue Provision (MRP)

Friday 16 October 2020

Is it time to revisit MRP?

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Brexit Deadline Day Webcast with Columbia Threadneedle

Thursday 15 October 2020

A second chance to listen to this week's instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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The Future of the High Street?

Thursday 15 October 2020

This topic was spoken about long before COVID-19 reared its ugly head, but with lockdowns still in place across the globe, this question is more pertinent than ever

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Negotiating PFI, PPP, JV and Outsourced Service Delivery Arrangements

Wednesday 14 October 2020

Increasingly, Arlingclose is being asked to provide advice on local authority contracts including Private Finance Initiatives, other forms of Public Private Partnerships and Joint Ventures and outsourced services.

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Interest Rate Risk Management Using Swaps

Thursday 08 October 2020

Local authorities which fund their borrowing requirements from either internal borrowing or short-term variable rate borrowing from other local authorities are exposed to the risk of interest rates rising. A swap is one way of managing this risk.

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Security in a Negative Rate Environment

Wednesday 07 October 2020

When interest rates are negative, and you withdraw your cash with interest deducted, have you broken the golden rule of keeping your investment secure?

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Diversifying Debt with EY Webcast

Monday 05 October 2020

A second chance to listen to last week's instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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A History of Base Rate

Friday 02 October 2020

Base Rate is older than you might think and started when the Bank of England was granted a Royal Charter by King William and Queen Mary in 1694.

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REITs in a Local Authority Investment Portfolio

Thursday 01 October 2020

Are Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) a good investment for local authorities?

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Brexit: Where are we now?

Tuesday 29 September 2020

Four years, three prime ministers and one pandemic later, we approach the finish line for Brexit negotiations. What are the issues preventing a trade agreement from being reached?

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Revolving Credit Facilities

Friday 25 September 2020

An introduction to Revolving Credit Facilities: how can local authorities use them and why is it a good time to start thinking about them.

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Longer or Lower Webcast

Tuesday 22 September 2020

A second chance to listen to last week's instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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Income Strips

Tuesday 22 September 2020

Income Strip transactions could be just one of the options available in a brave new world of local authority capital funding.

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Negative Expectations

Friday 18 September 2020

Expectations for negative rates, apparently kicked into the long grass by the Bank of England as recently as the August Monetary Policy Report, have received a boost following the publication of the minutes of the September MPC meeting.

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Is your Working Capital, Working for you?

Friday 18 September 2020

Working capital can no longer be the forgotten element of treasury planning

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The Return is not Enough

Monday 14 September 2020

Risk should also be involved in any decision-making.

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Managing Liquidity in a Negative Rate Environment Webcast

Friday 11 September 2020

A second chance to listen to this week's instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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What happened to Carillion?

Friday 11 September 2020

What led to their demise and were the warning signs there?

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Future Funding Forum Webcast

Tuesday 08 September 2020

A second chance to listen to last week's instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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Pass the PWLB

Monday 07 September 2020

Allowing local authorities to transfer PWLB loans between each other could dramatically increase flexibility in debt management, reduce risk and deliver substantial savings. In this Insight Arlingclose examine how this could work.

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Strategic Fund Allocations and Managing Risk

Wednesday 02 September 2020

How do you minimise risk when investing in Strategic Pooled Funds?

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The Capital Financing Requirement (CFR)

Tuesday 01 September 2020

The CFR measures a vital component of an authority’s capital strategy, the amount of capital spending that has not yet been financed by capital receipts, capital grants or contributions from revenue income.

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Liquidity Management Webcast

Friday 28 August 2020

A second chance to listen to this week's instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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Irrational Exuberance

Thursday 27 August 2020

Time to dust off Greenspan's warning?

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Give us a Waive

Tuesday 25 August 2020

Sterling yields are heading towards zero – and perhaps MMF fees are too

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Managing Optimum Cash Balances

Monday 24 August 2020

Liquidity is a key requirement of an effective treasury operation but is holding excessive liquidity an expensive luxury in the current interest rate environment? Are there ways in which the optimum cash balance can be calculated?

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Are you holding too much cash?

Friday 21 August 2020

The elephant in the room is the likelihood of more widespread negative interest rates

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Equity Markets & Equity Funds Update Webcast

Thursday 20 August 2020

A second chance to listen to this week's instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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Capitalising on your Capital Strategy

Thursday 20 August 2020

Arlingclose have provided our clients with a template to form the basis for their capital strategy

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Accounting for Negative Interest Income

Wednesday 19 August 2020

Corporate finance managers should be thinking now about the accounting implications, ready for when the time comes.

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Surprised?

Monday 17 August 2020

After a number of positive data releases outperformed expectations, is it possible that economists' forecasts are too pessimistic?

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The Usable Capital Receipts Reserve

Thursday 13 August 2020

As Statements of Accounts are being produced is there an opportunity to review the balance sheet and make sure we are making the best use of resources?

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iDealTrade - a Local Authority Dealing Platform

Tuesday 11 August 2020

Find out more about what makes iDealTrade an easy, reliable and secure trading solution.

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Can we still bank on the banks?

Wednesday 05 August 2020

Should depositors be any more concerned compared to a few months ago?

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Commercial Property Investment Update

Tuesday 04 August 2020

Can a local authority with a small and concentrated exposure to commercial property deal with the impact of non-payment or reduction in rental levels?

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Managing Commercial Property Risk Webcast

Monday 03 August 2020

A second chance to listen last week's instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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A New National Infrastructure Bank?

Friday 31 July 2020

With the UK set to lose access to European Investment Bank finance, could we see a new independent infrastructure institution?

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Time to do something different on debt?

Tuesday 28 July 2020

HM Treasury’s consultation on the Public Works Loan Board (PWLB) “Future Lending Terms” closes at the end of July. While we wait to find out about new rules, rates and availability, an expanding band of borrowers are asking themselves - is it time to do something different on debt?

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Section 114

Monday 27 July 2020

What is Section 114 and why is it more relevant during the Covid-19 pandemic?

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Demography is Destiny

Friday 24 July 2020

What does a future world look like where population shrinks rather than grows?

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Investment Benchmarking; what does it tell us?

Thursday 23 July 2020

Arlingclose' quarterly investment benchmarking under the microscope

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PAC Report on Commercial Investments Webcast

Thursday 23 July 2020

A second chance to listen to the next instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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Am IBORing you?

Monday 20 July 2020

The Countdown to 2021: What’s happening with LIBOR transition?

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How Creditworthy is your Leisure Provider?

Tuesday 14 July 2020

Councils are often forced to step in with short term finance to ensure continuity of service.

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The Importance of Financial Support and the Necessity of Due Diligence

Friday 10 July 2020

Arlingclose has a successful track record of performing due diligence on a variety of commercial enterprises, from housing associations to retailers to property developers.

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The Future for Sustainable Capitalism Webcast

Thursday 09 July 2020

A second chance to listen to the next instalment of the #TrendingTreasury series

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Getting the Balance Right

Monday 06 July 2020

Is it now time to consider future borrowing relating to the two funds under two separate borrowing strategies?

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Happy Bobby Bonilla Day!

Wednesday 01 July 2020

This story teaches us the risk of having certain outgoings paid for by uncertain income

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Potential Sunburn for Commercial Property

Monday 29 June 2020

A CVA is a process which allows an insolvent company to pay creditors over a fixed period.

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Are We Approaching the End of QE in the UK?

Thursday 25 June 2020

Are we approaching the end of QE?

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PWLB Consultation & The Future of LA Borrowing Webcast

Friday 19 June 2020

A second chance to listen to the fifth webcast in the #TrendingTreasury series

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Can it be Capitalised?

Friday 19 June 2020

Are you making a significant charge to Revenue when it could be Capitalised?

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Arlingclose digs deep… and plants a tree.

Wednesday 17 June 2020

Read the steps that we have taken in becoming carbon negative.

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The Economy of Vaccines

Tuesday 16 June 2020

Certainty or pure speculation?

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Return of reason or temporary hiatus?

Friday 12 June 2020

Had investors simply got ahead of themselves or is there more to the rise than meets the eye?

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QE: Price Inflation or Asset Price Inflation Webcast

Friday 12 June 2020

A second chance to listen to the fourth webcast in the #TrendingTreasury series

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Will Coronavirus lead to higher Inflation

Thursday 11 June 2020

External Insight

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PWLB Future Lending Terms – The Sooner the Better?

Friday 05 June 2020

Over the past twelve months, forecasting PWLB rates has become much more complicated.

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HRA Interest Costs

Wednesday 03 June 2020

Is it time to take stock?

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Banks are safer than in 2008 – but safer for who?

Friday 29 May 2020

The UK banking sector has undergone significant structural changes since the global financial crisis of 2007-09. So if coronavirus has a similar impact on banks, how different will the impact be?

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Responsible Investment – ESG Engagement

Thursday 28 May 2020

Engagement is a popular approach to responsible investment

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What is Dividend Yield?

Friday 22 May 2020

Does a stock with a high dividend yield automatically make a great investment?

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Value Investing in the Time of Coronavirus Webinar

Thursday 21 May 2020

Arlingclose hosted Schroders’ Ben Arnold, CFA to discuss how value investing strategies are holding up during the pandemic.

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Code Commitments

Tuesday 19 May 2020

Ensuring councils continue to operate within the Money Markets Code.

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The Last Time Things Were This Bad

Thursday 14 May 2020

This article looks at what happened in a very different and very long ago economic crisis.

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How Slow Can You Go?

Thursday 14 May 2020

How slow are credit rating agencies at updating ratings?

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Coronavirus and Commercial Property Webinar

Tuesday 12 May 2020

Coronavirus and Commercial Property

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Credit cards getting locked-down?

Wednesday 06 May 2020

What do consumer credit data tell us about the impact of the lockdown?

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The Fiscal Cost of Tackling Coronavirus

Friday 24 April 2020

Some startling but perhaps not unexpected numbers have been bandied about over the last couple of days.

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Risky Business

Wednesday 22 April 2020

Using sustainable hedging strategies to minimise interest rate risk.

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How low can we go, and how fast will we get there?

Tuesday 07 April 2020

Consumer confidence has plunged, read Arlingclose' take on the latest economic releases

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Happy New Year

Wednesday 01 April 2020

Year End Consultancy Help

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Are you Missing Out on MRP Savings?

Thursday 23 January 2020

Minimum Revenue Provision (or Loans Fund Repayments in Scotland) is the local authority equivalent of depreciation.

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Flying into Trouble?

Thursday 16 January 2020

State Aid

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16 Is the New 17

Thursday 03 October 2019

IFRS 16 Leasing Insight

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After Mark Carney; who could be next?

Wednesday 11 September 2019

Who is going to replace Mark Carney in January 2020?

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IFRS 9 and Other Common Year End Problems

Friday 19 July 2019

IFRS 9 and Other Common Year End Problems

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Summer Loanin’: When's the best date to deal?

Wednesday 05 June 2019

Summer Loanin’: When is the best date to deal?

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Modifying your Year End Position?

Wednesday 24 April 2019

Loan Modification

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Monitoring Risk in Local Government Finance

Friday 05 April 2019

Financial Strength Ratings

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Interest Rates – How Low Can They Go?

Thursday 28 March 2019

Interest Rates – How Low Can They Go?

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Don’t Get Caught Out by IFRS 9

Wednesday 20 March 2019

Don’t Get Caught Out by IFRS 9

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Investment Property: a calculated risk?

Monday 04 February 2019

Investment Property Analysis

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Strategy Overload

Monday 05 November 2018

Strategy Overload

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HRA Debt Cap. Is it the answer to the housing crisis?

Friday 12 October 2018

HRA Debt Cap. Is it the answer to the housing crisis?

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IFRS 16 …Are you ready yet?

Friday 24 August 2018

IFRS 16 …Are you ready yet?

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The new stars in the Bank of England’s Inflation Report

Monday 20 August 2018

The new stars in the Bank of England’s Inflation Report

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Treasury Management Systems

Wednesday 08 August 2018

Treasury Management Systems

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A change to the GDP model

Thursday 02 August 2018

A change to the GDP model

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Passive Aggressive

Thursday 14 June 2018

Passive Aggressive

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Peaks and Troughs

Wednesday 30 May 2018

Peaks and Troughs

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Are You Capital Rich but Revenue Poor?

Tuesday 01 May 2018

Are You Capital Rich but Revenue Poor?

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Minimum Revenue Provision - Revised Guidance

Tuesday 27 March 2018

Minimum Revenue Provision - Revised Guidance

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iDealTrade - February 2018 Review

Wednesday 07 March 2018

IDealTrade - February 2018 Review

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Rate Hikes, Job Cuts?

Monday 05 March 2018

Rate Hikes, Job Cuts?

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External Insight - Deutsche Asset Management

Tuesday 27 February 2018

EU Money Market Reform - LVNAVs: Cash or cash-equivalent?

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Local Authority Credit Risk

Wednesday 21 February 2018

Local Authority Credit Risk

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IFRS 9 and Pooled Funds

Monday 05 February 2018

A treasury manager and a financial accountant were overheard chatting by the coffee machine recently…

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What could a hard Brexit mean for investors?

Tuesday 12 December 2017

As negotiations continue between Theresa May and Jean-Claude Juncker, many are discussing whether we are going to have a hard or a soft Brexit. What does this mean exactly?

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iDealTrade - Local Authority Market Insight

Thursday 07 December 2017

Arlingclose launched iDealTrade.net on 8th November 2017. iDealTrade is a platform for local authorities to borrow and lend to one another, a market which has grown massively in recent years due to the high credit quality of local authorities and the flexibility and affordability of the funding they can offer.

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Bank Stress Tests 2017 – Resilience, but no room for complacency

Wednesday 06 December 2017

Bank Stress Tests 2017 – Resilience, but no room for complacency

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The REIT way to invest in commercial property?

Tuesday 21 November 2017

The REIT way to invest in commercial property?

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iDealTrade Press Release

Wednesday 15 November 2017

iDealTrade Press Release

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The Changing Face of Payments

Monday 13 November 2017

The Changing Face of Payments

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External Insight - DCLG considering allowing shared ownership for RTB replacements

Friday 25 August 2017

The government is considering proposals from a group of 50 councils to allow them to spend Right to Buy receipts on purchasing properties for shared ownership.

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Miffed by MiFID 2

Monday 10 July 2017

Miffed by MiFID 2

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Bail-in at Banco Popular Espanol makes it a model for future failing banks

Monday 12 June 2017

Drowned out by the noise of last week’s UK general election, one event went under the radar: the first demonstration of the formal and swift bail-in of a failing bank under the EU’s Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive (BRRD), making it a model...

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The UK Money Markets Code

Monday 22 May 2017

The UK Money Markets Code

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Newham & Barclays LOBO Restructuring

Thursday 02 March 2017

Newham & Barclays LOBO Restructuring

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External Insight - Woodford Investment Management Ltd.

Monday 20 February 2017

Are UK equities overvalued?

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Housing White Paper

Friday 10 February 2017

Housing White Paper

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External Insight - CCLA - Property Sector Perspective

Monday 06 February 2017

External Insight - CCLA - Property Sector Perspective

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External Insight - Insight Investments - Asset-backed securities, ‘The Big Long’?

Monday 30 January 2017

External Insight - Insight Investments - Asset-backed securities, ‘The Big Long’?

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External Insight - Charteris - Inflation/Deflation Cycle: Why Index Linked Gilts Are Not The Answer

Thursday 12 January 2017

External Insight - Charteris - Inflation/Deflation Cycle: Why Index Linked Gilts Are Not The Answer

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External Insight - Payden & Rygel

Monday 09 January 2017

External Insight - Payden & Rygel

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External Insight - Federated Investors (UK)

Wednesday 04 January 2017

External Insight - Federated Investors (UK)

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Asset Financing and Leasing Variations

Monday 02 January 2017

Asset Financing and Leasing Variations

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Housing Companies

Tuesday 15 November 2016

Housing Companies

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The Prudential Regulation Authority

Friday 04 November 2016

The Prudential Regulation Authority

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Quantitative Easing: Bingeing on Bonds?

Thursday 29 September 2016

Quantitative Easing: Bingeing on Bonds?

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Hope after Brexit

Monday 26 September 2016

Hope after Brexit

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Brexit Note to the Accounts

Tuesday 13 September 2016

Brexit Note to the Accounts

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Borrowing Update - Post-EU Referendum Vote

Sunday 26 June 2016

Borrowing Update - Post-EU Referendum Vote

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Death Of A LOBO

Sunday 26 June 2016

Barclays Bank has tackled their problematic local authority Lenders Option Borrowers Option (LOBO) book head on, informing all standard LOBO borrowers they have permanently waived their options to increase the rate on these loans.

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Keep Calm and Carry On

Friday 24 June 2016

The United Kingdom has voted to leave the European Union

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Help Sheets

Tuesday 30 November 2010

Help Sheets

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