Charlie Nunn, the chief executive of Lloyds Banking Group – the UK’s biggest bank, providing one in four current accounts – has a deep insight into how millions of people spend, save and borrow. In a wide-ranging interview, he shared five practical tips for managing money, from automating savings to talking openly with a partner.
Nunn’s first piece of advice is to make saving automatic. “If you’re able to carve out a little bit and put it somewhere else where you won’t have access to it and be able to spend it, I think that’s the easiest way to start having a saving mindset,” he said. He recommends setting up a standing order, using cash envelopes, or round-up tools that put spare change aside. “Saving little, saving early and saving regularly,” he added.
“Lloyds CEO Charlie Nunn shares five money management tips, including automating savings and discussing finances in relationships.”
As well as a regular saving habit, Nunn emphasised the importance of an emergency fund – ideally one to three months’ salary – for unexpected bills like a broken boiler or car repairs.
When it comes to budgeting, Nunn admitted he “hates budgeting and always has”. Instead, he checks his current account as soon as he gets paid and moves a chunk into savings immediately. “Do it as soon as you can,” he said.
Money and relationships are another key area. Nunn and his wife use a joint account and have “complete transparency” over finances. His personal red flag in a relationship is “someone who isn’t careful with money”. He credits his own prudence to his upbringing: his parents divorced and his mother raised four children, meaning he grew up “constantly worrying about what we were spending money on”, from cheap supermarket food to carefully planned holidays.
Nunn has tried to pass on those values to his own children, though he acknowledged they “take no advice from me because I’m their dad”. They receive pocket money to help them budget and “live within their means”. He noted that two of his children are natural spenders while the others are savers, reflecting what the bank sees among its customers.
On the broader question of financial responsibility among young people, Nunn said he does not think they are generally irresponsible, but added that he is concerned about “the bigger c…” – his sentence was cut short.
As living costs remain high, Nunn’s advice offers a rare glimpse into the personal financial habits of the man who runs Britain’s largest high-street bank.