Charlie Nunn, the boss of the UK's biggest bank, has a confession: he hates budgeting. "I've always hated budgeting," he says. But the chief executive of Lloyds Banking Group, which provides one in four current accounts, has five tips for managing money, drawn from a career of watching how customers spend, save and borrow.
His first piece of advice: automate your savings. "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," Nunn says. He suggests setting up a standing order, using cash envelopes or round-up tools that put spare change aside. The mantra: "Saving little, saving early and saving regularly." He looks at his current account as soon as he gets paid and moves money into savings. "Do it as soon as you can," he adds.
“Lloyds CEO Charlie Nunn admits he hates budgeting and shares five money tips.”
Beyond day-to-day saving, Nunn recommends an emergency fund for surprise bills like a broken boiler or car repairs. The amount depends on your circumstances, but he advises setting aside one to three months' salary if possible.
Money in relationships is another area Nunn knows well. He and his wife use a joint account and have "complete transparency" over money. His red flag: "Someone who isn't careful with money" — because he has always been "relatively prudent."
That prudence was shaped by childhood. His parents divorced and his mother raised four children, meaning he grew up thinking carefully about spending. "We were constantly worrying about what we were spending money on and managing money carefully," he recalls.
Nunn has tried to pass on those lessons to his children, though they "take no advice from me because I'm their dad." They get pocket money to help them budget, and they live within their means. Two are natural spenders, others savers — a split Nunn says the bank sees among customers too.
As for the idea that younger people are financially irresponsible? Nunn does not think so, but is concerned about "the bigger c…" — the source text cuts off, but his broader advice remains: automate, talk, save early, and keep an emergency fund.