He will write a weekly FT Weekend column, beginning 19 November, aimed at personal investors and savers.
Kirk is a former editor of Lex, the FT’s column on business and finance. He has spent more than two decades in finance and journalism, most recently as head of research and responsible investment at HSBC Asset Management, head of the research institute at DWS, and head of multi-asset and thematic research at Deutsche Bank.
FT editor Roula Khalaf said: “Stuart brings a wealth of experience and insight from his career in financial services and is well placed to comment on the issues facing the sector. He is an outstanding writer, and I am delighted to welcome him back to the FT. He joins a growing personal finance team that is the best around. Market instability and the cost of living crisis understandably mean that readers value their insight now more than ever.”
Stuart Kirk said: “I am thrilled to be re-joining the Financial Times as an investment columnist and look forward to sharing more than 25 years of experience with our readers each week. Whether it’s funding retirement or responses to climate change, growing wealth is essential if we are to solve the myriad challenges facing us today – and there has rarely been a global investment environment so perplexing, to put it mildly.”
Kirk’s appointment coincides with an expansion of personal finance coverage on FT.com and in the FT Weekend Money section. This will include new features from the Lex and Moral Money teams, columns from Moira O'Neill and features by senior editorial columnist John Plender. At the heart of the coverage will be the Serious Money column by the FT’s consumer editor Claer Barrett.
Reader traffic to the FT’s personal finance hub has continued to grow through 2022, say the publishers. The Money Clinic podcast, presented by Claer Barrett, has received one million downloads in the past six months. Use of formats including audio, video, visual journalism and live reader Q&As will support efforts to reach new audiences with personal finance content.
Last year the FT launched its own charity, the Financial Literacy and Inclusion Campaign (FLIC), which aims to democratise financial education: young people, women and disenfranchised communities are the main targets for FLIC’s output of free and engaging content.
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