These may all be for idiosyncratic reasons but they add up to an environment where the broader attractiveness of Britain as a place for banks to operate is once again under scrutiny. ... Challenger banks say their ambitions to grow have been damped down by disproportionate and complex regulations, including capital requirements.

• ring-fencing req
• bail-in debt (that regulators can force-convert to equity

One of the ways officials tried to achieve this was by promoting so-called challenger banks that were meant to take on the incumbents. But despite regulators deliberately handing out more banking licences to newcomers in order to foster competition, the UK’s retail banking market remains dominated by the largest historic players.

let them eat (bank)cake!