The consultancies most recommended by clients and peers, rated by sector and specialism. Plus: millennial professionals’ search for meaning; weighing consultants’ worth; the conflict of interest debate; a call for courage on diversity; HS2 blurs consultancy lines; Brexit and fees

There are words I use daily now that simply did not exist — even a month ago

Treasury secretary enters war against Covid-19 with handicaps, but he’s all America has got

Proprietary trading is hard to identify and did not cause the crisis

FCA chief says regulators will lose faith in how US handles crises if regime changes

Financial markets watchdog positions as defender of Main Street investors

While Google, Facebook and Twitter are set for a grilling in Congress over Russia, it is the online retailer that is drawing intense scrutiny

Political mood in US has shifted against big tech companies

Traditional rulemaking is unable to keep up with new digital businesses

Some experts say variable annuities are too complicated and offer a poor deal for consumers 

The tetchy leader needs to understand that people never forget abuse of hierarchical power

Ingrained hierarchy and lack of recognition drive away young recruits

With lockdowns fuelling anxiety among staff, should companies be investing in meditation training?

A previously simple decision of whether to reopen an office is now freighted with mortal peril

Cotoneasters, a plant gardeners gravely underrate, have performed beautifully this mild ‘non-winter’

How plants, whether real or in the imagination, help calm fears and enhance our lives

These self-isolating desert fathers were connoisseurs of plants — and human nature

GPs and charities warn patients dying from coronavirus are suffering unnecessarily

Tala al-Jabri is among a rising number of female professionals in the kingdom

World’s largest container shipping group may use strengthened balance sheet to swoop

Regulations are dripping with good intentions but come at a cost

The collapse in the price of the black stuff is proving a boon for ship owners

Warmly burnished and gently cryptic, this is easy listening at its most enjoyable

New album channels protest music and social comment through Delta blues mythology and psych-rock

The opera singer gets to the heart of the music in tender performances

Operators warn they will struggle to meet franchise agreements as passenger numbers plunge

Support for five networks around England follows coronavirus rescue packages for bus and train sectors

Optimism of large chains belies scepticism that film goers will flock back

In China, a shrinking bottom line has intensified the already tense affair of splitting profits

Britain failed to take advantage of island status, warns panel, as it calls for more transparency

From bored employees to train trouble in the French Alps, the manufacturer has faced new challenges

Concern in Beijing that accounting scandal could damage other overseas listings

Patrick Jenkins and guests discuss Deutsche Bank's radical overhaul, Andrea Orcel's lawsuit against Santander and Ireland's plans to expand Dublin as a financial centre. With special guest Michael D'Arcy, Irish financial services minister.

Contributors: Patrick Jenkins, financial editor, David Crow, banking editor, Olaf Storbeck, Frankfurt financial correspondent, and Laura Noonan, US banking editor. Producer: Fiona Symon

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Patrick Jenkins and guests discuss what Citigroup's results tell us about the US bank earnings season, Standard Chartered chief Bill Winters' defiant response to investor criticism of his pay packet, and how banks are tackling the problem of money laundering, With special guest Brandon Daniels of Exiger 

Contributors: Patrick Jenkins, financial editor, Robert Armstrong, US banking editor, David Crow, banking editor, and Caroline Binham, financial regulation correspondent. Producer: Fiona Symon

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Patrick Jenkins and guests discuss how the overhaul at Deutsche Bank is going, catch up with the challenges facing challenger banks and look at why Citigroup is coming under pressure to restructure. With special guest Mark Mullen, chief executive of Atom Bank

Contributors: Patrick Jenkins, financial editor, Stephen Morris, European banking correspondent, David Crow, banking editor, Nick Megaw, retail banking correspondent, and Laura Noonan, US banking editor. Producers: Andrew Georgiades and Fiona Symon

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Patrick Jenkins and guests discuss HSBC's cost-cutting drive, what to expect from next week's US bank results, and the departure of Vernon Hill from Metro Bank. With special guest Jordi Gual, chairman of Spain's CaixaBank

Contributors: Patrick Jenkins, financial editor, David Crow, banking editor, Laura Noonan, US banking editor, and Nicholas Megaw, retail banking correspondent. Producer: Fiona Symon

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Patrick Jenkins and guests discuss the retrial of former Barclays bankers over the bank's arrangements with Qatar at the height of the financial crisis, the poor level of support among banks for a climate change initiative backed by Bank of England governor Mark Carney, and the Fed's decision to drop the introduction of tougher liquidity rules for foreign banks. With special guest, Erkin Nosinov, a director at BCS Consulting.

Contributors: Patrick Jenkins, financial editor, Caroline Binham, financial regulation correspondent, David Crow, banking editor, and Laura Noonan, US banking editor. Producer: Fiona Symon

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Patrick Jenkins and guests discuss whether regulators are easing up on bank capital rules, tough times for UK peer-to-peer lenders, and why Goldman Sachs is planning to bring wealth management to the masses. With special guest Harald Benink, professor of banking and finance at Tilburg University in the Netherlands.

Contributors: Patrick Jenkins, financial editor, David Crow, banking editor, Nicholas Megaw, retail banking correspondent, and Laura Noonan, US banking editor. Producer: Fiona Symon

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An activist who dug his own course in pursuit of reform

Demand for tech services expected partly to counter pandemic downturn

Too many big brands have been coasting for too long

Watching non-stop news has driven Nick Foulkes to distraction: what’s going on with everyone’s wrists?

Stylists advise on how to look professional when working remotely. Join a live discussion on Friday April 24 at noon and 5pm

Helen Barrett discovered the perfect ‘austere but dramatic’ dress from The Vampire’s Wife. Then came the celebrities

Those who have struggled to ‘dress the part’ will find respite in the former Vogue editor’s essays

Policymakers should use this opportunity to broaden, not trim, health benefits

Formation of regional coalitions offers a path to a staggered exit

Addiction experts say Covid-19 could tip heavy drinkers into full-blown alcoholism

The less well-off will be the most exposed to Covid-19 infection

Mortality statistics show 122,000 deaths in excess of normal levels across 14 countries analysed by the FT