Sir Howard John Davies (born 12 February 1951) is a British economist and author, who is the chairman of

NatWest Group NatWest Group plc is a British banking and insurance holding company, based in Edinburgh, Scotland. The group operates a wide variety of banking brands offering personal and business banking, private banking, investment banking, insurance and ...

and the former director of the

London School of Economics , mottoeng = To understand the causes of things , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £240.8 million (2021) , budget = £391.1 milli ...

. He was the first chairman of the

Financial Services Authority The Financial Services Authority (FSA) was a quasi-judicial body accountable for the regulation of the financial services industry in the United Kingdom between 2001 and 2013. It was founded as the Securities and Investments Board (SIB) in 19 ...

. Davies was chairman of the

Phoenix Group Phoenix Group Holdings plc (formerly Pearl Group plc) is a provider of insurance services based in London, England. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. History The company was founded in 185 ...

and, until July 2015, chaired the UK

Airports Commission The Airports Commission was an independent commission established in September 2012 by the Government of the United Kingdom to consider how the UK can "maintain its status as an international hub for aviation and immediate actions to improve t ...

. In February 2015, he was appointed chairman of The Royal Bank of Scotland Group, taking up the role from September 2015. RBS Group was renamed NatWest Group in 2020. Since 2011 he has been a professor at the Paris School of International Affairs, part of Sciences Po. He teaches master's courses on financial regulation and central banking.

Early life

Howard Davies born in

Blackley Blackley is a suburban area of Manchester, England. Historically in Lancashire, it is approximately north of Manchester city centre, on the River Irk. History The hamlet of Blackley was mentioned in the Domesday Book. The name derives from ...

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The ...

, England. He was educated at Bowker Vale County Primary School and the

Manchester Grammar School The Manchester Grammar School (MGS) in Manchester, England, is the largest independent school (UK), independent day school for boys in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1515 as a Grammar school#free tuition, free grammar school next to Manchester C ...

, where he was the founder editor of ''The Mancunian'', before going as an exchange student to the

Memorial University of Newfoundland Memorial University of Newfoundland, also known as Memorial University or MUN (), is a public university in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, based in St. John's, with satellite campuses in Corner Brook, elsewhere in Newfoundland and ...

and to

Merton College Merton College (in full: The House or College of Scholars of Merton in the University of Oxford) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Its foundation can be traced back to the 1260s when Walter de Merton, ...

University of Oxford , mottoeng = The Lord is my light , established = , endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019) , budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20) , chancellor ...

, where he gained a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

degree in modern history and modern languages. He edited the '' Cherwell'' newspaper in 1972. On graduation from Oxford he joined the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London, working the Western European Department on bilateral relations with Scandinavia, Italy, Austria and the Holy See. In 1974 he became Private Secretary To HM Ambassador in Paris, working for Sir Edward Tomkins and Sir Nicholas Henderson. From 1976 he was on secondment to HM Treasury, where he worked on Nationalised Industry Policy and Aerospace finding (civil and military). He was responsible for the UK participation in the Concorde, Airbus and Tornado programmes, in particular. In 1979 he was awarded a

Harkness Fellowship The Harkness Fellowship (previously known as the Commonwealth Fund Fellowship) is a program run by the Commonwealth Fund of New York City. This fellowship was established to reciprocate the Rhodes Scholarships and enable Fellows from several cou ...

to attend the

Stanford Graduate School of Business The Stanford Graduate School of Business (also known as Stanford GSB) is the graduate business school of Stanford University, a private research university in Stanford, California. For several years it has been the most selective business schoo ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

where he obtained a

Master of Science A Master of Science ( la, Magisterii Scientiae; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree in the field of science awarded by universities in many countries or a person holding such a degree. In contrast t ...

degree in management sciences. In 1980 he returned to HM Treasury, where he was principal for monetary policy, from 1980 to 1982.

Career

Davies was employed by McKinsey and Company from 1982 to 1987. From 1985 to 1986 he was special advisor to Chancellor of the Exchequer

Nigel Lawson Nigel Lawson, Baron Lawson of Blaby, (born 11 March 1932) is a British Conservative Party politician and journalist. He was a Member of Parliament representing the constituency of Blaby from 1974 to 1992, and served in the cabinet of Margar ...

. From 1987 to 1992 he was controller of the Audit Commission. In 1992 he was appointed director general of the Confederation of British Industry, a position he held until 1995, when he was appointed Deputy Governor of the Bank of England. In 1997 Davies was appointed executive chairman of the newly established

, regulating the whole of the UK financial services industry, serving until 2003. From 2003 to 2011 Davies was director of the

London School of Economics and Political Science The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) is a public university, public research university located in London, England and a constituent college of the federal University of London. Founded in 1895 by Fabian Society members Sidn ...

. He stepped down from the position on 3 March 2011 following concern over the institution's decision to accept funding from a foundation controlled by the Libyan dictator

Muammar Gaddafi Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar al-Gaddafi, . Due to the lack of standardization of transcribing written and regionally pronounced Arabic, Gaddafi's name has been romanized in various ways. A 1986 column by '' The Straight Dope'' lists 32 spellin ...

's son, Saif, in the LSE–Gaddafi affair. Davies was a non-executive director of GKN between 1989 and 1995, and a member of the international advisory board of

National Westminster Bank National Westminster Bank, commonly known as NatWest, is a major retail and commercial bank in the United Kingdom based in London, England. It was established in 1968 by the merger of National Provincial Bank and Westminster Bank. In 200 ...

from 1991 to 1995. From 1995 to 2004 he was founder chairman of ''Employers Forum on Age'', a body formed to oppose ageism at work. From 2002 to 2010 he was a trustee of the

Tate Gallery Tate is an institution that houses, in a network of four art galleries, the United Kingdom's national collection of British art, and international modern and contemporary art. It is not a government institution, but its main sponsor is the U ...

(where he was interim chair 2008–09), and was a member of the governing body of the

Royal Academy of Music The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is the oldest conservatoire in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the first Duke ...

from 2004 to 2013. He is patron of ''Working Families'', a campaigning charity which supports the rights of parents in the workplace. In 2004 he was elected to an Honorary Fellowship of

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

and became an independent director of

Morgan Stanley Morgan Stanley is an American multinational investment management and financial services company headquartered at 1585 Broadway in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. With offices in more than 41 countries and more than 75,000 employees, the fir ...

, where he chaired the board's risk committee. From 2006 to 2010, Davies was a non-executive director of Paternoster Ltd. Since 2003, he has held membership in the International Advisory Committee of the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission, and, since 2012, has chaired the International Advisory Committee of the

China Securities Regulatory Commission The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) is a government ministry of the State Council of the People's Republic of China (PRC). It is the main regulator of the securities industry in China. History China's first Securities Law was ...

. He became chairman of the Royal Bank of Scotland Group in September 2015. In November 2019 the Group was renamed as the NatWest Group. In 2009 Davies was appointed as advisor to the Investment Strategy Committee of

GIC Private Limited GIC Private Limited is a sovereign wealth fund in Singapore that manages its foreign reserves. Established by the Government of Singapore in 1981 as the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation, its mission is to preserve and enhance th ...

, formerly known as Government of Singapore Investment Corporation. Two years later he joined its international advisory board. He resigned from both positions in September 2012, on appointment to the chair of the Airports Commission (GIC Private Limited is a part owner of Heathrow). In 2010 he became a non-executive director of

Prudential plc Prudential plc is a British multinational insurance company headquartered in London, England. It was founded in London in May 1848 to provide loans to professional and working people. Prudential has dual primary listings on the London Stock E ...

, and chair of the Risk Committee, a role he performed until May 2020. In 2011 he joined the Regulatory Advisory Council of Millennium LLP in New York. Also in 2011, he joined the board of the

Royal National Theatre The Royal National Theatre in London, commonly known as the National Theatre (NT), is one of the United Kingdom's three most prominent publicly funded performing arts venues, alongside the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal Opera House. I ...

, where he was chairman of the finance committee for 4 years. From 2012 to 2015 Davies was a member of the advisory board of the SWIFT Institute. Davies is a council member of the

Asian Bureau of Finance and Economic Research Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

in Singapore. In December 2020 he was appointed chairman of Inigo Ltd, an insurance company in the Lloyd's of London market.. In November 2022, as chairman of NatWest Bank, Davies reportedly told staff that he had been "embarrassed" during a meeting with the IMF after

Liz Truss Mary Elizabeth Truss (born 26 July 1975) is a British politician who briefly served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from September to October 2022. On her fiftieth day in office, she stepped dow ...

and Kwasi Kwarteng released a mini-budget. Davies stated that the mini-budget had damaged the UK's reputation.

Other

Davies chaired the judges of the

Man Booker Prize The Booker Prize, formerly known as the Booker Prize for Fiction (1969–2001) and the Man Booker Prize (2002–2019), is a literary prize awarded each year for the best novel written in English and published in the United Kingdom or Ireland. ...

for fiction in 2007. He was appointed chairman of the trustees of the London Library in November 2015. He was a character in the David Hare play ''

The Power of Yes ''The Power of Yes'' is a 2009 play by English playwright David Hare. It is the story of a dramatist seeking to understand the financial crisis of 2007–2008 Finance is the study and discipline of money, currency and capital assets. It ...

'' which premiered at the London National Theatre in October 2009.

Honours

Davies was appointed a

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are ...

in 2000.

Books

* * * * * * ———————-(2022). The Chancellors: steering the British economy in crisis times. Cambridge: Polity Press. Davies writes regularly for ''The Financial Times'', ''Times Higher Education'', ''Project Syndicate'' and ''Management Today''.

Personal life

Davies is married to Prue Keely, and has two sons. He is a

supporter In heraldry, supporters, sometimes referred to as ''attendants'', are figures or objects usually placed on either side of the shield and depicted holding it up. Early forms of supporters are found in medieval seals. However, unlike the coro ...

of Manchester City Football Club and the

Lancashire County Cricket Club Lancashire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Lancashire in English cricket. The club has held first-class status since it was founded in 1864. Lancashire's home is Old Trafford Cricket Ground, although the team also play ...

. He plays cricket for

Barnes Common Barnes Common is common land in the south east of Barnes, London, England, adjoining Putney Lower Common to the east and bounded to the south by the Upper Richmond Road. Along with Barnes Green, it is one of the largest zones of common land in ...

and Powerstock and Hooke cricket clubs.

References

External links

*
Davies' column archive
at Project Syndicate; accessed 17 March 2014.
Business blog
at ''

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nik ...

''; accessed 17 March 2014
Davies' profile
at

Forbes.com ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...

; accessed 17 March 2014.
Profile at ''Global Policy''
accessed 17 March 2014.
Davies' profile at World Economic Forum
accessed 17 March 2014.
Davies' biodata
at ''Debrett's People of Today''; accessed 17 March 2014. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Davies, Howard 1951 births Living people Businesspeople from Manchester British economists Directors of Morgan Stanley McKinsey & Company people Stanford Sloan Fellows Harkness Fellows Knights Bachelor People educated at Manchester Grammar School Alumni of Merton College, Oxford New York University faculty People associated with the London School of Economics People associated with the Royal Academy of Music Stanford Graduate School of Business alumni Deputy Governors of the Bank of England Fellows of Merton College, Oxford