Manchester-based Co-operative Financial Services (CFS) has announced plans to axe more than 600 jobs as part of a strategic review. The group said 670 field based jobs will go after conducting a review of its life insurance and savings division following its merger with the Britannia Building Society in August 2009. CFS, which has 8 [...]
Britain’s largest mutually-owned retailer, the Co-operative Group, has today posted “record” results for the 2010 year. The group said underlying operating profits before significant items surged 48% to £545.7 million compared with £367.9 million the year before. Group sales were 10% higher at £13.7 billion. Earnings at the group have been boosted by its acquisition [...]
The Co-operative Financial Services (CFS), which recently completed its merger with Britannia Building Society, has reported its interim results for the 28 weeks to 25 July 2009. CFS, which is part of The Co-operative Group, is the UK’s biggest mutual retailer with more than 4 million members, over £14 billion turnover and has over 5,000 [...]
Britannia Building Society has cut the cost of some of its fixed-rate mortgages by up to 0.6% The lender is now offering its two-year fixed-rate deal from 3.59%, meaning that new customers borrowing £150,000 at 60% loan-to-value face monthly payments of £760.21 on a 25-year term. An arrangement fee of £549 will be added to [...]
The Britannia Building Society is set to merge with Co-operative Financial Services (CFS). The merger will create a business worth £70 billion in assets with nine million customers and over 12,000 employees in more than 300 branches. The combined group will be a wholly owned subsidiary of The Co-operative Group and Britannia members are to [...]
Basic bank account standards at risk
Consumer Focus, the statutory consumer champion, is calling for a minimum standard for basic bank accounts to be introduced, to ensure the survival of the product, which is used by 20 per cent of the UK population. Basic bank accounts are used by people who are unable to open a regular current account, perhaps because [...]
A year has passed since the government replaced Child Trust Funds with Junior ISAs (JISAs) but more than half of parents are unaware that they exist, according to research by friendly society Family Investments Children born between 1 September 2002 and 2 January 2011 were eligible to open a Child Trust Fund and to receive [...]
PPI costs increase for Lloyds and Barclays
Lloyds Banking Group has set aside a further £1 billion to cover compensation costs for customers who were mis-sold Payment Protection Insurance (PPI). Yesterday, Barclays revealed £700m of PPI costs in the 2012 third quarter increasing its total provision to £2bn. Lloyds Banking Group, which has made the largest PPI provision out of all the [...]
Bonfire Night worst day for burglaries warns Aviva
Insurance group Aviva is warning households to be vigilant over security at this time of the year, as burglaries tend to increase signficantly between Halloween and Bonfire Night. On Bonfire Night the number of burglaries increases by around 25 per cent compared with an average day, according to the company’s research. Aviva also reported a [...]
Consumer confidence hits six-month low
Although the UK has officially emerged from recession, consumer confidence fell to -30 in October from -28 in September, according to market researcher company GfK NOP. This is the lowest level of consumer confidence since April when the UK was in an economic slump. Analysts had expected the index to remain stable at -28. Respondents [...]
100,000 mortgage holders escape negative equity trap
New figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) reveal that the number of borrowers in negative equity fell 13 per cent to 719,000 between the first quarter of 2011 and the first quarter of 2012. The number of borrowers paying a mortgage greater than the value of their property fell despite a further small [...]
Banking commission appoints counsel to cross-examine witnesses
The Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards has appointed counsel to cross-examine witnesses during its inquiry into the collapse of Halifax Bank of Scotland. Barrister David Quest has been appointed to question witnesses in a public evidence session, as part of a sub-committee panel inquiry into the bank. Andrew Tyrie, chairman of the Commission said: “This [...]
Mortgage approvals increased in September
An increase in the number of mortgage approvals in September suggests that the ‘Funding for Lending’ scheme, launched by the Treasury and the Bank of England, may be starting to give the property market a boost. According to Bank of England figures, the number of loans approved for house purchase increased by 2,103 to 50,024 [...]
Five million paid less than living wage
Five million people in the UK are paid less than the ‘living wage’ of £7.20, or £8.30 in London, according to a new report by KPMG. In Northern Ireland, 24 per cent of workers receive less than they require in order to pay for essentials and the situation is little better in Wales where 23 [...]
Commission calls for radical change in housing market
A new study by the Future Homes Commission suggests that the way homes are built in the UK is dysfunctional and needs a radical overhaul. The organisation, which was established by the Royal Institute of British Architects, believes that 300,000 extra homes could be built every year without any input from Government funding. Instead, the [...]
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