financial settlement

is it a legal requirement to have a Petition for divorce issied and or a decree absolut granted beofre one can conclude financial settlement between the parties?

My wife and I are in agreement to settle the finaces now before issuing a petition !

Well, er - yes and no.
You can certainly discuss finances in advance of a divorce. The key issue is enforceability.
Ideally, if you reach agreement, you can then apply for a Court order, which is called a Consent Order because both parties agree to it, and the procedure for it is relatively simple, straightforward, and not expensive. Such an agreement would almost certainly be enforceable on both sides, and binding.
However :
1. Such an order cannot be made except in the context of divorce proceedings ;
2. Such an order cannot be made before a Decree Nisi ; and
3. It can''t take effect till Decree Absolute.
You could have an agreement drawn up before divorce, but if you have definitely made up your mind that divorce is what you want, then in most cases it would be duplication and a waste of expense.
LMM