TV Features

In the Eighties, the aggressive culture of the trading floor was glamourised in films such as 'Wall Street'. Ruthless and chauvinist men getting the deals and the girls.

As we go through the recession of the Noughties, the predominantly male city culture is yet again under the microscope.

The latest Hollywood offering examining financial trading is 'The International' starring actor Clive Owen. But this time round the bankers are the villains.

A macho mentality

Maybe it's too simplistic to say men are entirely to blame for the current financial crisis.
But some people I've been speaking to in the course of my research admit - not always to camera mind you - their macho mentality has exacerbated an unsupervised and unfettered culture of risk taking and profit seeking.

Angry Male Banker

They claim we need to adopt a more pragmatic and cautious approach for a new financial future. 

There have been scientific studies done on the effect of the male hormone testosterone. Research from Cambridge University found testosterone influences risk taking and a man's ability to make rational decisions.

City Girl

City Girl - as she's known to her readers - is a trader who also pens a weekly column for the London Paper. 

She recently wrote:

A trader feeling the pressure

"Men are dragging the City down with them, and very well may be biologically unsuited to be placed at the top echelons of finance.

"If men would only give up their silly desire for infinite sums of money, the City of London would be a much healthier place."

Life in the Square Mile

I met with City Girl and she spoke to me about her life in the square mile. She's provocative of course like most columnists, and carefully preserves her anonymity.

"I have seen men get so aggressive, shout, scream and throw things across a room," she told me.

"Why don't we have any female dictators? It's the same reason we don't have female managing directors."

"Women don't have that ruthlessness, maybe they just don't find insider trading and hostile takeover games interesting enough."

The Glass Ceiling

It's not true there aren't any females in top positions in the City. The glass ceiling may sometimes seem as high as the Canary Wharf Tower but a few have climbed to the top.

The Cranfield School of Management produces an annual Female FTSE 100.

According to their latest research, 12% of directorships on FTSE 100 corporate boards are held by women.

Ruth Sealy co-authored the Female FTSE report. "Studies show the best decisions are made when there is a mix of men and women in charge," she explained.

"Men tend to 'over-catastroph-ise'. In business women seem to be better a taking a more long term view and not just focusing on this year's bonus."

A broader vision

Gillian Tett is assistant editor and Head of Global Markets at the Financial Times. She predicted the credit crunch two years ago.

"People have been chasing profits at all cost, taking crazy risks and really losing sight of how finances fit into the wider economy," she told me.

The FT's Gillian Tett

"Putting more women in banking would not solve the problem overnight. But we need to have a much broader vision, we need more diversity."

"We need more people who don't just look at profit and mathematical models to measure the business of pushing money around."

Gamblers, not bankers

Ruth Lea is director and economic adviser at the Arbuthnot Banking Group and a governor of the London School of Economics. In the past she worked for Lehman Brothers.

She added: "Some of the men working in the city are not bankers they are gamblers. It may be that we need a more female style to banking if you want to call it that."

"We need to look at a more nurturing careful approach to finance, that doesn't take such risks as in the past."

Less masculine, more feminine

Julie Meyer is the founder of Ariadne Capital, an international investment & advisory firm. She believes women may be more actually turn out to be more adaptable to the turbulent times of this financial crisis.

"I tell women, don't worry about the glass ceiling build your own cathedral!" She explained.

"Create your own companies and senior management structure. Women are looking to leave large corporate structures and be part of small businesses which will I believe turn out to be global leaders."

So maybe the future of finance might have to be less masculine to take us out of recession.

And maybe Hollywood might come up with a Sex and the City style film for our times, with attractive and interesting women discussing stocks and shares instead of cocktails and shoes.

Your Views:

How sexist. You would never get away with a story like this if it was women you were blaming. Why is it OK to insult the men?

Veronica

Yes I do believe that men are more responsible for the state we are in, and that on the whole (with the exception of Margaret Thatcher) women are more thoughtful and cautious than men. These are qualities which our country needs to start valuing instead of denigrating (as I witness every week at PMQ"s)

Iceland has seen the light, now with a woman Prime Minister, half a cabinet of women, and two major banks now led by women.

Sadly we are well behind.

Gina

I think instead of concentrating on who is to blame for the recession we should be think how to fix the resection because dwelling in the past won't help the future. Men and women are in this together and should not be splitting apart blaming others but coming together fixing the problem.

Caitlan, 13

I was a trader for 7 years in the City and the women are just as bad and as good as the men. The proposition that women are less likely to be aggressive and be subject to a casino culture is incorrect.

Furthermore, I worked for an female MD who was more aggressive and gambler like as any male and she had probably had the first sex discrimination suit filed and this was by a woman.

The proposition is without substance and any statistical evidence.

Kumar

Isn't it just typical for the finger to be pointed at aggressive male business behaviour as a reason for the recession. Some of the most aggressive and calculating people I've met in business are women; who use every physical and emotional weapon available to get what they want. Why don't people focus on the real problem of lack of control over fat cat bonuses, unrealistic salaries, greed, over-commercialisation and mismanagement of funds.

Paul

Goverment intervention is the only culprit behind the current economic crisis. Make no mistake, the recession will continue as long as goverment intervention is allowed to continue. Interest rates needs to go up, failing companies should fail. Of course, money can not be printed, inflation has to stay low.

Bankers were made to give loans to high risk workers in order for the politicians to get their votes. The banks were given a promise by the goverment if they made the high risk loans, tax payer bail out.

And now politicians, the ones who started it all, are accusing their first victims, the bankers, of greed and irresponsibility.

Teli

Your piece on bankers and traders decisions in the city being made by testosterone –fuelled men is very interesting . I discussed with a retired city trader friend of mine recently the likelihood that at least some of the mad decisions taken by traders and bankers had to be done by men who were often high on cocaine. When I worked in London I was horrified by the extent of cocaine usage among people who were making decisions daily that affected thousands of people. My trader friend agreed and told me no one found it extraordinary – its a way of life. He tells me politicians are the same!!!

Judy Morhen

I'm surprised that the BBC is now embracing the idea of a 'blame culture'. This is discriminatory and prejudiced. I'm sure if someone was to suggest that in the ubiquitous child abuse cases (such as baby P) women were more to 'blame' because social services have more women working in it or women are more 'cautious', then I am sure there would be outrage. Similarly if someone was to suggest that people of Asian decent were 'more to blame' for being would-be terrorists, and all the other stereotypes I can think of I am sure it would not have had news time. The premise to the 'story' is rubbish, neither polemic or evocative and quite insulting. The banking crisis was based on a culture of greed - which I believe has no sexual boundaries!

Damian

Well I have never heard any of my female friends boasting about their bonuses so at least they are more discreet than their male counterparts so let’s blame the men this time!

Victoria

Perhaps excessive masculinity in the city is a problem. However, are women really any different? Aren't we forgetting Margaret Thatcher? And her free market economics which created the "money grabbing money loving" culture of the '80s?

Sure, put women in charge of the city and the economy. Then we'll all have interest rates back up to 16% again, just as in 1991 under Mrs Thatcher.

Liam

The whole city is structured on SHORT-TERMISM i.e. what I can get NOW rather than in 9 months.  Women (generalising here) tend to view things in a longer time frame as we have to invest more in the survival of our young.  Men and their wild oats are all about the now, not the long term.  Just look at the proportion of women in nurturing and INVESTING in future generations and caring for the environment.   More women needed in the city?  Only if they don’t become like men.  More importantly our societal view of meeting IMMEDIATE wants/desires/fashions against what is NECESSARY for our long term survival is what really needs to be addressed.

Caia