368% of the British national debt, while the average leverage ratio (assets/net worth) is 24 to 1. The Financial Services (Banking Reform) Act 2013 calls for a paradigmatic shift toward the principle adopted by the US of risk averse strategies. This manifests itself in the form of "ring-fencing" retail banking to protect consumers and creating requirements for certain amounts of capital to be retained to act as a buffer against market instability. This reform is set to support the strengthening economy and is a response to the Financial crisis of 2007–08. Over the past 40 years (to 2014) the banking system in the UK experienced a 'dramatic shift' with total assets increasing from 100% of GDP to 450%, and it is 'plausible that the UK banking system will continue to grow rapidly', owing to its probable 'comparative advantage' in international banking services, with the pre-eminence of London as a financial centre. As of Dec 2015, a number of new banking licences were secured, e.g. by Atom Bank and Tandem Bank. In 2017, Business Insider came out with a list of the 18 most profitable banks in the United Kingdom while stating that the banks were now becoming profitable after facing challenges for the past few years. The top spot was grabbed by HSBC with an income of £5.49 billion followed by Lloyds with a profit of £4.04 billion. Under a scheme launched in September 2021, 159 can be dialled by phone to contact a selection of banks directly. This has been implemented as a method of preventing financial scams. See also Credit unions in the United Kingdom UK banking law 2008 United Kingdom bank rescue package 2009 United Kingdom bank rescue package Banks of the United Kingdom Banknotes of the pound sterling Bank regulation Banking Standards Board Banking in the United States British Bankers' Association Financial institution History of banking References Further reading Born, Karl Erich. International Banking in the 19th and 20th Centuries (St Martin's, 1983) online Lane, Nicholas. "The Fathers of English Banking" History Today (Mar 1953) 3#3 pp 190-199 Michie, Ranald C. British Banking: Continuity and Change from 1694 to the Present (Oxford UP, 2016) 334 pp. online review Mottram, R. H. Bowler Hat: A Last Glance at the Old Country Banking (Hutchinson, 1940) External links A history of English clearing banks