Barclays knows action must follow warm words As the banking commission rumbles through Parliament, the Financial Services Act proceeds towards statute and regulatory changes snow down like so much confetti, banking is still in the dock. A teary Kweku Adoboli facing charges that he gambled his way to a £1.5bn loss at UBS does not exactly help matters. This weekend, the Bishop of Durham argued that only those banks with "a social purpose" should have access to Government support and that there should be a formal qualification for any banker handling more than "minimal" sums in investment and commercial banking. "Social purpose" banks, the contender to be the next Archbishop of Canterbury continued, would even get regulatory or tax breaks to add to their bottom line. Some critics might like Barclays to become a simple retail bank, a less exciting version of Lloyds Banking Group run by the studiedly boring Antonio Horta-Osorio whose suit choices are more exciting than his business. Where Mr Jenkins" predecessor, Bob Diamond, was seen as, frankly, a bit flash, Mr Jenkins has the air of a man who likes rambling in the Peak District. How, though, beyond image, does Mr Jenkins signal fundamental change? He knows that stories of winding down the investment arm of the bank are overblown as Barclays relies on the division for nearly 60pc of its profits. If Mr Jenkins goes too far in that direction he will have shareholders ringing up and politely asking if he would like to acquaint himself with the route to the exit. Barclays" share price is already trading at just 0.6pc book value. Mr Jenkins doesn't want that figure sinking lower. Some of the broad brush strokes are becoming clear. Ten days ago, Barclays announced it was provisioning a further £700m against payment protection insurance claims, a move which takes the bank's total exposure to £2bn. This can be added to the £450m set aside to deal with swaps mis-selling claims, a figure which could also rise higher. Surprisingly large provisions announced to an unsuspecting market are of course straight out of the classic text - How To Be A New CEO. When Mr Horta-Osorio became the chief executive of Lloyds he ordered all his executives to "come clean" on the nasty stuff sitting on the books. They would get one chance at truth and reconciliation so they had better take it. The result was a shockingly high provision for PPI - some £3.2bn. Mr Jenkins, it appears, is doing the same. Another focus is pay. Senior sources close to the bank say that executives earning between £250,000 and £750,000 can expect some pretty tough conversations about bringing that figure down. As one top 10 investor who has been briefed on the changes told me, Sir David Walker, the new chairman, has admitted that if that means losing people then so be it. This is what executives call the "marzipan layer" in the organisation. Not quite the expensive icing and not the relatively low paid fruit and nut - but the group in-between who have grown rich in the good times on pretty generous metrics. A general downward trajectory on remuneration does have upsides. Smaller boutique banks will find it easier to compete and public opprobrium might be slaked. Mr Jenkins could find worse places to start. Cynthia's pain Falling off a horse is very sore. Leaving an organisation with investors" grumbles ringing in your ears likewise. Cynthia Carroll, the outgoing chief executive of Anglo American, has experienced both in the last six months - breaking her hip after a horse riding accident in February and announcing on Friday that she would be leaving the mining conglomerate. "The history books will not be kind on her tenure," was how one analyst summed up Ms Carroll's record during which Anglo's market value has dropped by $14bn (£8.7bn). Ms Carroll took a big diversification bet in Brazil - broadening Anglo American's footprint which until then was too dependent on the vagaries of the South African mining sector. But the Minas-Rio iron ore project became bogged down in Brazilian politics, cost overruns and rows about permits. Its production start date has been delayed by more than a year. Add that to protests in South Africa, a messy divorce with Codelco in Chile and falling profits, and Ms Carroll decided enough was enough. But to just focus on the bottom line does her a disservice. Brazil will ultimately be a good generator of cash. The review of the struggling platinum mining arm, Amplats, is on the verge of completion and a sale or mothballing of some of the loss-making assets almost inevitable. Ms Carroll also did important work cleaning up Anglo's safety record and strengthening government relations in South Africa. With some perspective, the history books may be somewhat kinder to Ms Carroll than many expect.