The City liked to pride itself that it lived up to the Stock Exchange motto, ‘My word is my bond’, but this claim has no credibility with the public following the banking crisis. There is nostalgic talk of the need to return to old values but did the City’s culture, ethics and business practices ever meet the ideal? Is it possible to establish a credible ethical code in the modern financial world and do today’s bankers deserve their reputation for sleaze and greed?

Philip Augar led NatWest’s global securities business, and was a Group Managing Director at Schroders before turning to writing in 2000. His fifth book, Reckless: The Rise and Fall of the City, has just been released in paperback and he has completed a trilogy highly critical of the modern financial services industry.