Kate Middleton and Prince William went on a royal engagement this week at the 23rd ICAP Charity Day in London on Wednesday, Dec. 9. As patrons of numerous charities, the royals attended the event on behalf of Skillsforce, SportsAid, and Place2Be, and the couple participated by speaking directly with ICAP's customers to close deals and boost trading volume.
The Duchess sported a new shoulder-length haircut and wore a teal L.K. Bennett suit and black heels, while the Duke donned a dark blue suit and a red tie for the event.
The royals were greeted by staff upon arriving at the ICAP building and on the trading floor, they were greeted by more staff and brokers dressed in outlandish attire. Under the guidance of the brokers, the Duke and Duchess spoke with some clients to close deals over the phone, and both appeared to be enjoying themselves while they raised money for their charity.
According to the Daily Mail, the couple started their tour at the Fixed Income European Repo desk where the Duke appeared to be in his element as he reportedly said on the phone, "Is that all James? Is that all you can do?" amid loud cheers from the traders.
The website reports that one of the biggest deals that the royals were involved in came from the TriOptima Post Trade Area, which clears risks out of the market. The Duchess was reportedly left speechless when she was told that she and her husband just conducted a deal with two British banks worth €200 billion each.
At one point, the Duke even teased the Duchess as she was on the phone with a trader named Andrew, and the father of two reportedly said, "Catherine, I think you can stop flirting with them now." The Duke then turned to trader Brett Lincoln and jokingly said, "Sorry my wife is just embarrassing me!"
The two also participated in a game of table tennis where the Duke is said to have teased the Duchess by saying that she wasn't normally so polite when they play.
"Or this quiet," the Duchess quipped.
At the end of the day, the couple reportedly closed deals worth £500 million, or about $750 million between banks.
