Bankers Anonymous

“There are absolutely thousands of undiagnosed gambling addicts in the City. The difference is that the odds are slightly more in your favour than if you're gambling in a Ladbrokes, and so there are many more people who can be successful gambling addicts." Unnamed trader, quoted in the Guardian

Back in November, the story of Kweku Adobol, the trader who lost UBS £1.5 billion, spilled out of the financial pages and into the mainstream limelight. There was shock at how a trader’s gambling addiction can wreak such massive damage. The story also revealed to the outside world just how widespread addiction to gambling is behind the trading desks of investment banks. This shouldn’t come as a surprise. Traders are incentivised by a bonus structure which rewards risk-taking with big cash pay-outs, and are cushioned by the confidence that if their bets turn bad, they are not losing their own money. It’s a toxic combination that is driving an addiction phenomenon in the City.  

Just like in Ladbrokes, where punters can bet on anything from horses to the weather, bankers can also bet in financial markets on anything from currencies to clean air. Two decades ago, the banks were eyeing up food as the next ‘big thing’. But food isn’t like any other asset class. Every person in the world needs to eat, and with 870 million people experiencing chronic hunger, playing with food prices is a matter of life and death. 

You’d think that the human devastation caused by food price hikes would be enough to make anyone think twice about gambling on food. But there’s big money at stake. Goldman Sachs made £250 million from betting on food last year. Blinded by high returns, the banks are not going to give up their addiction easily. 

They need help.

Bankers Anonymous is a new recovery programme to help bankers kick the habit. We can’t afford to wait for them all to quit on their own. Anyone can join Bankers Anonymous. It is a simple five-step programme which will help force bankers to end their addiction to gambling on hunger. Join up today and take step-one. The bankers need us