Outlet profile

Capital Economics

UK-based independent economic research consultancy

Owned byMajority owned by Phoenix Equity Partners (a UK private equity firm), with a minority stake held by LDC (the private equity arm of Lloyds Banking Group) and the management team; founded by economist Roger Bootle, who retains a stake

FundingSubscription fees paid by institutional clients — primarily investment banks, asset managers, and wealth management firms — plus bespoke consultancy engagements with corporations and governments; no advertising or public funding

On the administrationmostly neutral

Background

Capital Economics was founded in 1999 by economist Roger Bootle, who had previously served as Group Chief Economist at HSBC and as a member of the UK Treasury's panel of economic forecasters under Chancellor Kenneth Clarke. Bootle built the firm into one of the world's largest independent macroeconomic consultancies, with more than 70 economists and offices in London, New York, Toronto, Sydney, and Singapore. In 2014, LDC — the private equity arm of Lloyds Banking Group — took a minority stake to support international growth. In 2018, Phoenix Equity Partners acquired a controlling stake in a buyout valuing the firm at approximately £95 million, with LDC retaining a smaller minority position. Capital Economics sells its analysis through tiered subscription products (CE Advance and CE Gateway) to banks, asset managers, corporations, and government bodies, and earns recognition as a top forecasting firm from FocusEconomics. Bootle himself is publicly eurosceptic and was a member of Economists for Brexit (later Economists for Free Trade), views that are his own and do not define the firm's research output. Capital Economics does not produce news or opinion journalism in the traditional sense; it produces paid macroeconomic forecasts and policy analysis consumed by financial professionals.

Sources

Profile compiled 2026-07-20; refreshed when ownership, funding, or the administration changes.

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