Promoting Tachell, Mermaids? Why the fuck? What's it got to do with bloody banking??
Ostensibly an attempt to recover reputation points. But then again, the hand of Stonewall is there from quite early on:
'In 2012 after a series of scandals and huge fines from regulators for, among other things, running a multi-billion dollar tax avoidance scheme Barclays was in crisis and appointed the notably nice Anthony Jenkins as its CEO. His mission was to reform the bank’s toxic corporate culture.
Changing a culture takes time though so in 2014 Jenkins signalled his virtuousness by embracing the cause du jour. All things LGBTQ+. In an interview in the Standard he announced Barclays would be the headline sponsor of Pride in London.
“While Jenkins forecasts it could take five to 10 years to restore the reputation of the bank, its reputation as a diverse employer has already won plaudits, not least from campaigning group Stonewall.”
He also boasted that in 2014, “The bank ran the British finance industry’s first transgender-awareness event at its Canary Wharf base…”
All this rainbow willy-waving was all very well but investors still demanded a return and when profits sagged in 2015 Jenkins was fired. Now the Board turned to the man they had overlooked the last time. The man Jeffrey Epstein their client had urged them to appoint.'