FT names Kirk its investment columnist

The Financial Times has appointed Stuart Kirk as an investment columnist.

He will write a weekly FT Weekend column, beginning Nov. 19, aimed at personal investors and savers.

Kirk is a former editor of Lex, the FT’s agenda-setting 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.

Kirk left HSBC earlier this year after criticism of a speech he made downplaying global warming’s impact.

“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,” said FT editor in chief Roula Khalaf in a statement. “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.”

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 award-winning consumer editor Claer Barrett.