Iona Bain is an award-winning journalist, broadcaster, author, and speaker specialising in personal finance. She is the resident financial expert on BBC Morning Live, offering practical and relatable advice to millions each week.
In 2011, Iona founded the pioneering Young Money Blog, establishing herself as the UK’s leading voice on millennial finances throughout the 2010s. Her expertise covers a range of financial topics, from tackling money muling to cash stuffing, and her 2022 report on dyscalculia (commonly referred to as “numbers dyslexia”) brought significant attention to the condition. This groundbreaking work earned her an ambassadorship with National Numeracy.
Over her 13-year career, Iona has appeared extensively on television and radio, including Question Time, Newsnight, and Panorama. In 2023, she presented two in-depth investigations for File on 4, having previously hosted Radio 4’s Moneybox and co-presented The Austerity Audit with Paul Johnson in 2020.
Iona is a prolific writer, contributing a weekly column to The i newspaper and a bi-weekly column for Metro. Her insights have also been featured in youth and women-focused outlets such as Vogue, Refinery29, and VICE. As an author, her latest book, Own It, empowers young people to build a brighter financial future through smart investing.
Dedicated to improving financial literacy, Iona recently launched Focus on Finance, an initiative designed to educate the next generation about the financial industry through engaging in-person events with inspiring speakers. In 2024, she will be awarded the Freedom of the City of London in recognition of her contributions to young people’s financial education.