The U.K. government has committed to relaxing its stringent ring-fencing requirements for banks in forthcoming financial legislation. It will introduce legislative changes in its Financial Services and Markets Bill and will shortly open a consultation on further reforms to allow ring-fenced banks to offer more services and products to businesses and to operate more efficiently.

Ruth Prickett graduated from Cambridge University with a BA hons in History and has specialized in business and finance journalism for the past 20 years. She was editor of Financial Management, the magazine...