Ian Fraser
@ianfraser.bsky.social
Author and journalist. Latest edition of my book ‘Shredded: Inside RBS The Bank That Broke Britain’, about the pivotal role of what's now called NatWest in the global banking crash, was reissued in 2024. Recovering financial editor.
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Ian Fraser
@ianfraser.bsky.social
· Nov 8
Updated edition of my book ‘Shredded: Inside RBS The Bank That Broke Britain’—about why the world’s largest bank by assets collapsed in 2008 and took more than a decade to recover—available here:
www.amazon.co.uk/Shredded-Ins...
uk.bookshop.org/p/books/shre...
www.hive.co.uk/Product/Ian-...
www.amazon.co.uk/Shredded-Ins...
uk.bookshop.org/p/books/shre...
www.hive.co.uk/Product/Ian-...
Alex Honnold completed his free solo climb of Taipei 101, which at 1,667 ft (508m) is the Taiwanese capital’s tallest building, in 91 minutes.
On 3 June 2017 Honnold did what the entire climbing world said was impossible, free-soloing the 3,000 ft (914m) vertical face of El Capitan in Yosemite.
On 3 June 2017 Honnold did what the entire climbing world said was impossible, free-soloing the 3,000 ft (914m) vertical face of El Capitan in Yosemite.
Alex Honnold summits Taipei 101 skyscraper in free solo climb | CNN
American climber Alex Honnold summited Taipei 101 with no ropes or safety net.
share.google
January 25, 2026 at 11:42 AM
Alex Honnold completed his free solo climb of Taipei 101, which at 1,667 ft (508m) is the Taiwanese capital’s tallest building, in 91 minutes.
On 3 June 2017 Honnold did what the entire climbing world said was impossible, free-soloing the 3,000 ft (914m) vertical face of El Capitan in Yosemite.
On 3 June 2017 Honnold did what the entire climbing world said was impossible, free-soloing the 3,000 ft (914m) vertical face of El Capitan in Yosemite.
On Saturday, 37-year-old intensive care nurse Alex Pretti was shot dead by US Border Patrol agents in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
This short @theguardian.com film gives the background, including the mass protests against Trump’s immigration crackdown in the wake of 7 January killing of Renée Good
This short @theguardian.com film gives the background, including the mass protests against Trump’s immigration crackdown in the wake of 7 January killing of Renée Good
Guardian investigative correspondent Oliver Laughland and video producer Tom Silverstone report from the front lines of ordinary Americans’ war with Trump’s ICE hit squads in Minneapolis and its Minnesota environs.
@oliverlaughland.bsky.social @tomsilverstone.bsky.social
@atrupar.com
@oliverlaughland.bsky.social @tomsilverstone.bsky.social
@atrupar.com
The occupation of Minneapolis: resisting Trump’s ICE 'invasion' | Anywhere but Washington
YouTube video by The Guardian
youtube.com
January 25, 2026 at 11:11 AM
On Saturday, 37-year-old intensive care nurse Alex Pretti was shot dead by US Border Patrol agents in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
This short @theguardian.com film gives the background, including the mass protests against Trump’s immigration crackdown in the wake of 7 January killing of Renée Good
This short @theguardian.com film gives the background, including the mass protests against Trump’s immigration crackdown in the wake of 7 January killing of Renée Good
Reposted by Ian Fraser
AOC: "An ICE officer had violently pushed a woman to the ground and he had come over to help get her up and that is what precipitated this incident that very quickly led to an execution in the streets. What we are seeing here is a momentous pivotal moment for the United States."
January 24, 2026 at 10:25 PM
AOC: "An ICE officer had violently pushed a woman to the ground and he had come over to help get her up and that is what precipitated this incident that very quickly led to an execution in the streets. What we are seeing here is a momentous pivotal moment for the United States."
Reposted by Ian Fraser
Worth remembering when looking at the horrific scenes in the US right now that both Reform and the Tories have pledged to bring in ICE-style organisations to the UK if they win power
January 24, 2026 at 10:33 PM
Worth remembering when looking at the horrific scenes in the US right now that both Reform and the Tories have pledged to bring in ICE-style organisations to the UK if they win power
On housing, Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves are to the right of US president Donald Trump
Wall Street landlords have met a surprising opponent in Trump. So why is Starmer courting them? | Adam Almeida
To win votes, Trump can afford to face up to corporate power – to deliver his promised 1.5m homes, Starmer can’t, says writer and researcher Adam Almeida
www.theguardian.com
January 24, 2026 at 2:21 PM
On housing, Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves are to the right of US president Donald Trump
Reposted by Ian Fraser
Board of Peace - Season 1
January 24, 2026 at 7:45 AM
Board of Peace - Season 1
Guardian investigative correspondent Oliver Laughland and video producer Tom Silverstone report from the front lines of ordinary Americans’ war with Trump’s ICE hit squads in Minneapolis and its Minnesota environs.
@oliverlaughland.bsky.social @tomsilverstone.bsky.social
@atrupar.com
@oliverlaughland.bsky.social @tomsilverstone.bsky.social
@atrupar.com
The occupation of Minneapolis: resisting Trump’s ICE 'invasion' | Anywhere but Washington
YouTube video by The Guardian
youtube.com
January 24, 2026 at 12:22 PM
Guardian investigative correspondent Oliver Laughland and video producer Tom Silverstone report from the front lines of ordinary Americans’ war with Trump’s ICE hit squads in Minneapolis and its Minnesota environs.
@oliverlaughland.bsky.social @tomsilverstone.bsky.social
@atrupar.com
@oliverlaughland.bsky.social @tomsilverstone.bsky.social
@atrupar.com
Donald Trump’s so called “Board of Peace” is ”a parody of a colonial body” whose plan for Gaza will result in “ultimate control and subjugation” of the Palestinian people, independent journalist Sharif Abdel Kouddous of @dropsitenews.com tells @democracynow.org.
"Emperor" Trump's So-Called Board of Peace Erases Palestinians from Gaza Governance
YouTube video by Democracy Now!
youtube.com
January 24, 2026 at 10:47 AM
Donald Trump’s so called “Board of Peace” is ”a parody of a colonial body” whose plan for Gaza will result in “ultimate control and subjugation” of the Palestinian people, independent journalist Sharif Abdel Kouddous of @dropsitenews.com tells @democracynow.org.
Extraordinary story: Henry Raeburn's portrait of Scottish poet Robert Burns which was lost for 220 years is put on public display for the first time at @nationalgalleries.bsky.social. The painting, which dates from 1803, resurfaced during a house clearance in Surrey.
Long lost portrait of Scotland’s great poet Robert Burns goes on show for first time
The painting by Henry Raeburn, which resurfaced last year, is being displayed at the National Gallery of Scotland
www.theartnewspaper.com
January 23, 2026 at 10:17 PM
Extraordinary story: Henry Raeburn's portrait of Scottish poet Robert Burns which was lost for 220 years is put on public display for the first time at @nationalgalleries.bsky.social. The painting, which dates from 1803, resurfaced during a house clearance in Surrey.
Trump administration Is publishing a stream of Nazi and neo-Nazi propaganda.
The Labor Department has embraced Nazi slogans, the Pentagon is deploying neo-Nazi graphics, and the Department of Homeland Security posted a recruitment ad referring to white supremacist calls for a race war.
The Labor Department has embraced Nazi slogans, the Pentagon is deploying neo-Nazi graphics, and the Department of Homeland Security posted a recruitment ad referring to white supremacist calls for a race war.
The Trump Administration Is Publishing a Stream of Nazi Propaganda
Government social-media managers have transformed official feeds.
www.theatlantic.com
January 23, 2026 at 5:52 PM
Trump administration Is publishing a stream of Nazi and neo-Nazi propaganda.
The Labor Department has embraced Nazi slogans, the Pentagon is deploying neo-Nazi graphics, and the Department of Homeland Security posted a recruitment ad referring to white supremacist calls for a race war.
The Labor Department has embraced Nazi slogans, the Pentagon is deploying neo-Nazi graphics, and the Department of Homeland Security posted a recruitment ad referring to white supremacist calls for a race war.
British crown owned thousands of slaves in the Caribbean as late as 1831.
Even as he oversaw the Royal Navy’s suppression of the transatlantic slave trade, George IV continued to profit from the labour and sale of enslaved people.
Source: The Crown’s Silence, a new book by historian Brooke Newman
Even as he oversaw the Royal Navy’s suppression of the transatlantic slave trade, George IV continued to profit from the labour and sale of enslaved people.
Source: The Crown’s Silence, a new book by historian Brooke Newman
British crown was world’s largest buyer of enslaved people by 1807, book reveals
Exclusive: Author of The Crown’s Silence tells how navy and monarchy protected slave trade for hundreds of years
www.theguardian.com
January 23, 2026 at 5:20 PM
British crown owned thousands of slaves in the Caribbean as late as 1831.
Even as he oversaw the Royal Navy’s suppression of the transatlantic slave trade, George IV continued to profit from the labour and sale of enslaved people.
Source: The Crown’s Silence, a new book by historian Brooke Newman
Even as he oversaw the Royal Navy’s suppression of the transatlantic slave trade, George IV continued to profit from the labour and sale of enslaved people.
Source: The Crown’s Silence, a new book by historian Brooke Newman
Reposted by Ian Fraser
By #WhiskyInvestDirect @ianfraser.bsky.social
James Mackay has witnessed the decades-long drive to premiumisation from the inside and believes there is more to come.. "The 'doom and gloom' is overdone. We may be in the dark before dawn, but dawn will come."
www.whiskyinvestdirect.com/whisky-news/...
James Mackay has witnessed the decades-long drive to premiumisation from the inside and believes there is more to come.. "The 'doom and gloom' is overdone. We may be in the dark before dawn, but dawn will come."
www.whiskyinvestdirect.com/whisky-news/...
A Dram with James Mackay | WhiskyInvestDirect
From selling rum at a dollar a bottle in the Philippines to rare whisky casks in Singapore, James Mackay's career has followed the same premium path as the industry. Over a dram at the Scotch Malt Whi...
www.whiskyinvestdirect.com
January 23, 2026 at 1:04 PM
By #WhiskyInvestDirect @ianfraser.bsky.social
James Mackay has witnessed the decades-long drive to premiumisation from the inside and believes there is more to come.. "The 'doom and gloom' is overdone. We may be in the dark before dawn, but dawn will come."
www.whiskyinvestdirect.com/whisky-news/...
James Mackay has witnessed the decades-long drive to premiumisation from the inside and believes there is more to come.. "The 'doom and gloom' is overdone. We may be in the dark before dawn, but dawn will come."
www.whiskyinvestdirect.com/whisky-news/...
Elon Musk's Grok generated 3m sexualised images in 11 days, including 23,000 of children, according to researchers who say the generative AI chatbot “became an industrial-scale machine for the production of sexual abuse material”.
Grok AI generated about 3m sexualised images in 11 days, study finds
Estimate made by Center for Countering Digital Hate after Elon Musk’s AI image generation tool sparked outrage
www.theguardian.com
January 22, 2026 at 10:32 PM
Elon Musk's Grok generated 3m sexualised images in 11 days, including 23,000 of children, according to researchers who say the generative AI chatbot “became an industrial-scale machine for the production of sexual abuse material”.
Reposted by Ian Fraser
The ravings of a madman. But I’m just worried, given this manic obsession with “fake” polls, whether he’s about to invade Polland. I’ll get my coat!
January 22, 2026 at 6:00 PM
The ravings of a madman. But I’m just worried, given this manic obsession with “fake” polls, whether he’s about to invade Polland. I’ll get my coat!
Reposted by Ian Fraser
Deporting children with cancer.
Using a 5-year-old as bait.
Shooting moms.
ICE is beyond reform. And today the House is voting to bankroll more terror. Hell no.
Using a 5-year-old as bait.
Shooting moms.
ICE is beyond reform. And today the House is voting to bankroll more terror. Hell no.
January 22, 2026 at 5:02 PM
Deporting children with cancer.
Using a 5-year-old as bait.
Shooting moms.
ICE is beyond reform. And today the House is voting to bankroll more terror. Hell no.
Using a 5-year-old as bait.
Shooting moms.
ICE is beyond reform. And today the House is voting to bankroll more terror. Hell no.
Donald Trump sues JPMorgan and its CEO Jamie Dimon for at least $5bn claiming the world's largest bank by market value “debanked” him.
The US president alleges JPM stopped offering him banking services after the Capitol insurrection of 6 January 2021.
The US president alleges JPM stopped offering him banking services after the Capitol insurrection of 6 January 2021.
Trump sues JPMorgan Chase and Jamie Dimon for at least $5bn
US president alleges JPMorgan stopped offering him banking services in wake of January 6 Capitol riot
www.theguardian.com
January 22, 2026 at 7:17 PM
Donald Trump sues JPMorgan and its CEO Jamie Dimon for at least $5bn claiming the world's largest bank by market value “debanked” him.
The US president alleges JPM stopped offering him banking services after the Capitol insurrection of 6 January 2021.
The US president alleges JPM stopped offering him banking services after the Capitol insurrection of 6 January 2021.
Despite having criticised Davos as a place where unelected elites decide the future of the “little man” without democratic consent, and announcing that “Reform will reject the influence of the WEF and cancel Britain’s membership of it,” Farage is relishing his visit to Davos. @fletcherr.bsky.social
Nigel Farage: I’ll tax banks. They won’t like it, I don’t like them
He renews threat to scrap Bank of England interest payments to commercial lenders, reviving tensions over attempts to debank the Reform UK leader
www.thetimes.com
January 22, 2026 at 6:36 PM
Despite having criticised Davos as a place where unelected elites decide the future of the “little man” without democratic consent, and announcing that “Reform will reject the influence of the WEF and cancel Britain’s membership of it,” Farage is relishing his visit to Davos. @fletcherr.bsky.social
Israel’s prime warmonger Benjamin Netanyahu jumped at the chance to join Trump's ’Board of Peace’.
But he had to sign up from afar, as he's wanted by the ICC over alleged war crimes, and would risk arrest if he visisted Davos.
But he had to sign up from afar, as he's wanted by the ICC over alleged war crimes, and would risk arrest if he visisted Davos.
January 21, 2026 at 10:57 PM
Israel’s prime warmonger Benjamin Netanyahu jumped at the chance to join Trump's ’Board of Peace’.
But he had to sign up from afar, as he's wanted by the ICC over alleged war crimes, and would risk arrest if he visisted Davos.
But he had to sign up from afar, as he's wanted by the ICC over alleged war crimes, and would risk arrest if he visisted Davos.
US commerce secretary Howard Lutnick told a gathering at the World Economic Forum that the world should focus on coal as an energy source rather than renewables and made disparaging remarks about Europe. ECB president Christine Lagarde was among those who walked out.
www.ft.com/content/e2ae...
www.ft.com/content/e2ae...
January 21, 2026 at 4:03 PM
US commerce secretary Howard Lutnick told a gathering at the World Economic Forum that the world should focus on coal as an energy source rather than renewables and made disparaging remarks about Europe. ECB president Christine Lagarde was among those who walked out.
www.ft.com/content/e2ae...
www.ft.com/content/e2ae...
Lord Frost-led lobby group masquerading as an economics think tank, the Tufton Street based Institute for Economic Affairs, plunges deep into the red.
@privateeyenews.bsky.social
@privateeyenews.bsky.social
January 21, 2026 at 10:46 AM
Lord Frost-led lobby group masquerading as an economics think tank, the Tufton Street based Institute for Economic Affairs, plunges deep into the red.
@privateeyenews.bsky.social
@privateeyenews.bsky.social
“We’re in the midst of a rupture,” says Canadian prime minister Mark Carney, at the World Economic Forum in Davos 🇨🇭, as Trump plots the annexation of Greenland.
“You cannot live within the lie of mutual benefit through integration when integration becomes the source of your subordination.”
“You cannot live within the lie of mutual benefit through integration when integration becomes the source of your subordination.”
'Great powers have begun using economic integration as weapons': Carney
YouTube video by CTV News
youtube.com
January 20, 2026 at 10:37 PM
“We’re in the midst of a rupture,” says Canadian prime minister Mark Carney, at the World Economic Forum in Davos 🇨🇭, as Trump plots the annexation of Greenland.
“You cannot live within the lie of mutual benefit through integration when integration becomes the source of your subordination.”
“You cannot live within the lie of mutual benefit through integration when integration becomes the source of your subordination.”
This has got to be one of the most boring press conferences I’ve watched. Donald Trump holding up endless pictures of convicts.
January 20, 2026 at 7:00 PM
This has got to be one of the most boring press conferences I’ve watched. Donald Trump holding up endless pictures of convicts.
French president Emmanuel Macron isn’t taking any shit from Trump.
“We prefer the rule of law to brutality,” said Macron, speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos. He said neither France nor Europe is going to cave into bullies; to do so, he said, would lead to “vassalization”.
“We prefer the rule of law to brutality,” said Macron, speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos. He said neither France nor Europe is going to cave into bullies; to do so, he said, would lead to “vassalization”.
After Trump salvo, Macron says: we don't give in to bullies
In a scathing criticism of US President Donald Trump's latest tariff threat, French President Emmanuel Macron said Europe would not be intimidated.
www.reuters.com
January 20, 2026 at 6:29 PM
French president Emmanuel Macron isn’t taking any shit from Trump.
“We prefer the rule of law to brutality,” said Macron, speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos. He said neither France nor Europe is going to cave into bullies; to do so, he said, would lead to “vassalization”.
“We prefer the rule of law to brutality,” said Macron, speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos. He said neither France nor Europe is going to cave into bullies; to do so, he said, would lead to “vassalization”.
The world’s best-selling Scotch whiskies are all blends: four are from Diageo (Johnnie Walker, Black & White, J&B and Buchanan’s), two from Paris-based Pernod Ricard (Ballantine’s and Chivas Regal) and two from Bermuda-based Bacardi (Dewar's and William Lawson’s)
thewhiskeywash.com/whiskey-arti...
thewhiskeywash.com/whiskey-arti...
January 20, 2026 at 6:05 PM
The world’s best-selling Scotch whiskies are all blends: four are from Diageo (Johnnie Walker, Black & White, J&B and Buchanan’s), two from Paris-based Pernod Ricard (Ballantine’s and Chivas Regal) and two from Bermuda-based Bacardi (Dewar's and William Lawson’s)
thewhiskeywash.com/whiskey-arti...
thewhiskeywash.com/whiskey-arti...
Combating disinformation isn’t censorship. This is a well-written op-ed in @financialtimes.com by Global Disinformation Index co-founder and CEO Clare Melford
www.ft.com/content/c0f7...
www.ft.com/content/c0f7...
January 20, 2026 at 10:56 AM
Combating disinformation isn’t censorship. This is a well-written op-ed in @financialtimes.com by Global Disinformation Index co-founder and CEO Clare Melford
www.ft.com/content/c0f7...
www.ft.com/content/c0f7...