Whether you’re applying for a mortgage, taking out a loan or signing up for a new credit card, one number carries more weight than many people realize: your credit score.

In this week’s personal finance edition of Merryn Talks Money, hosts Merryn Somerset Webb and John Stepek are joined by John Webb, senior consumer affairs manager at Experian and an expert on credit scores. Together they explore the world of credit scores—what they are, how they’re calculated, why they vary across agencies and the many ways they can shape your financial future.

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Mining is often an afterthought for many investors. But according to this week’s guests on Merryn Talks Money, it shouldn’t be—especially given its critical role in the global economy and the energy transition (or should we say energy addition?). Nicky Shiels, head of metals strategy at MKS PAMP, and Evy Hambro, head of thematic and sector investing at BlackRock, join host Merryn Somerset Webb to discuss why investors need to pay closer attention to the melt-up in metals.

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In this week's roundup, Bloomberg UK Wealth Editor at Large Merryn Somerset Webb speaks with Money Distilled newsletter author John Stepek about the UK's debt problem. A report from Britain’s fiscal watchdog – the OBR – warns that the country faces "daunting" risks, as a soaring debt load has led to “substantial erosion” of its capacity to respond to future shocks.

So how will the government tackle that debt? Everyone’s suddenly talking about wealth taxes - but we might not get the wealth taxes everyone expects. Merryn and John look at why inheritance tax on homes, and capital gains tax, both look like potential targets - and talk about why politics always gets in the way of good policy.

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You want to invest in a market with political stability, low valuations and fast growing companies? Perhaps even one that might benefit from President Donald Trump’s deglobalisation agenda?

This week, host Merryn Somerset Webb is joined by Jose Manuel Silva, chief investment officer and partner of LarrainVial Asset Management, to discuss the place you should be looking - Latin America.

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In this week’s roundup, Bloomberg UK Wealth Editor at Large Merryn Somerset Webb speaks with Money Distilled newsletter author John Stepek about Chancellor Rachel Reeves's tearful appearance in the House of Commons and how that spurred a UK market selloff amid speculation about her future. They also discuss The Times report that AstraZeneca, one of the London market’s top stocks, is thinking of upping sticks and moving to America, and the trend of private equity firms accumulating a record inventory of portfolio companies.

Read more:

https://mailchi.mp/verdadcap/2024-private-equity-fundamentals?e=0e6992a317:

https://stefanik.house.gov/2025/6/stefanik-asks-sec-to-investigate-harvard-for-potentially-withholding-material-information-from-bondholders

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You’ve heard of Bitcoin, but have you heard of “Bitcoin treasuries?” From Japan’s MetaPlanet to UK firms like Coincilium and The Smarter Web Company, 61 publicly listed companies have now adopted the strategy of holding Bitcoin on their balance sheets—not just as a speculative bet, but as a hedge against inflation and a way to lure investors hungry for crypto exposure.

In this week’s episode of Merryn Talks Money, host Merryn Somerset Webb and Money Distilled author John Stepek are joined by Dominic Frisby, author of The Flying Frisby investment newsletter, to unpack this new strategy and whether the hype is grounded in value or hot air.

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Days after Donald Trump’s election victory in November, we sat down with Pippa Malmgren, founder and CEO of the Geopolitica Institute and former advisor to President George W. Bush, and Helen Thomas, CEO of the consultancy BlondeMoney and former special advisor at the UK Treasury, to ask what they expected out of the US president’s second term.

On this week’s Merryn Talks Money, they join host Merryn Somerset Webb yet again. This time to discuss his policies thus far, what they think is going to happen next and what it all means for your investments.

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On this week's Merryn Talks Your Money, Merryn Somerset Webb and John Stepek, author of Money Distilled, talk about navigating your portfolio amidst Middle East tensions. The conversation was recorded on Monday afternoon.

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