The UK’s High Street banks approved 74,590 mortgages in July, with the figure up from 71,521 in June and ahead of the previous six-month average (69,803). According to the British Bankers’ Association (BBA) house purchase approvals came in at 33,417, activity having gathered pace since June (32,123) and exceeded the previous six-month average (30,695). At [...]
Britain’s banks are warning that ring-fencing their retail activities, to protect against investment banking losses, could endanger the UK economy because of the cost involved. A ring-fencing proposal will form part of the Independent Commission on Banking’s (ICB’s) final report, due out in September. However, according to the British Bankers’ Association (BBA), the proposed reform [...]
Annual growth in banks’ gross mortgage lending stood at £7.6 billion in June, with the figure 11% lower than a year earlier, according to the British Bankers’ Association (BBA). Early signs of growth in the buy-to-let market were evident but both house purchase and remortgaging approvals continued to be weak, and with repayments still at [...]
Savers are missing out on billions of pounds in interest payments, according to a report by consumer group, Which? According to the report, by leaving money in low interest accounts, savers are missing out on a possible £12 billion. According to the consumer association, interest rates are not made clear to consumers on their bank [...]
According to the New Economics Foundation (NEF), banks could be forced to seek more support from the taxpayer next year, due to a £25 billion funding gap. The NEF has published a report on Britain’s banks entitled “Where Did Our Money Go?” and the 88-page document suggests an urgent reform of the sector is required, [...]
Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, has today warned banks over their excessive bonuses, suggesting the coalition Government will take very serious action if they “pay themselves unjustified bonuses”. Speaking to BBC Radio 4′s Today programme, Mr Clegg said: “Clearly, if the banks pay themselves unjustified bonuses, we reserve the right to take very serious action [...]
British banks will unveil their first-half profits this week with the five biggest banks expected to reveal they are back in the black. Banking giant HSBC will kick off the reporting season tomorrow, with Lloyds Banking Group and Standard Chartered announcing their results on Wednesday, Barclays on Thursday and Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) on [...]
Banks are keeping their customers in the dark about interest rate changes on their accounts, new research has found. The study by Which? Money found most banks rely on newspaper adverts or customers popping into their local branch to keep savers informed of rate cuts Only four of the twelve banks investigated guaranteed to keep [...]
A report by the Government-backed watchdog, Consumer Focus, has found nearly a million adults in Britain do not have a bank account. The report, called “On the Margins“, comes as the Government introduces a reform of mainstream banking, and explores why these individuals do not have a basic bank account. The Focus group, which is [...]
The British Bankers’ Association (BBA) has reported that gross mortgage lending amounted to £8.7 billion in March, with the figure 0.4% down on a year earlier and below the average of the previous six months (£9.2 billion). According to the BBA, repayments were stronger than usual as lenders actively encouraged borrowers to use surplus cash [...]
In yesterday’s Budget, Chancellor Alistair Darling said that every UK citizen will have the legal right to have a bank account. According to the Treasury’s Financial Inclusion taskforce, there are 1.75 million people in the UK that do not have a bank account. The taskforce said half of the 1.75 million come from the poorest [...]
In tomorrow’s Budget, Chancellor Alistair Darling is expected to announce that a basic bank account will be available to everyone. The announcement, which was leaked to the BBC today, will mean everyone has a legal right to have a bank account. According to the Treasury’s Financial Inclusion taskforce, there are 1.75 million people in the [...]
New figures from the British Bankers’ Association (BBA) show February’s gross mortgage lending at £8.6 billion, having staged a recovery from January’s low of £8 billion. The number of house purchase loans approved by the UK’s banks leapt 16% year-on-year, to 35,276, having managed a slight increase on January’s figure of 35,154. Furthermore, the value [...]
The British Bankers’ Association (BBA) has reported that mortgage lending in January was “relatively weak”, as adverse weather conditions and an inflated December market impacted on house sales. Last month, BBA members approved 35,000 loans to home buyers, down from 46,000 in December but up 37.8% on a year earlier. Remortgaging approvals stood at 20,252, [...]
Mortgage lending by Britain’s High Street banks strengthened slightly in December, although the end of the stamp duty holiday is likely to have prompted a surge in completions before the New Year. The British Bankers’ Association (BBA) reported net lending of £3.5 billion during the month, up from £3.4 billion in November and showing an [...]
Gross mortgage lending in November showed a slight monthly rise, according to the British Bankers’ Association (BBA). The figure stood £9.2 billion but was still 12% down on a year earlier. However, banks approved £6.6 billion in house purchase loans, up from £6.1 billion in October and a 200% increase on November of last year. [...]
Over the weekend, it emerged that Chancellor Alistair Darling is expected to announce a windfall tax on British banks in Wednesday‘s Pre-Budget Report. The measure is one of many being planned by Mr Darling to target high earners. Other measures include increasing the number of people liable to pay inheritance tax, as well as an [...]
Britain’s High Street banks approved more new mortgages and loans for house purchases in October, with the figure nudging up from 42,073 in September, to 42,238 According to the British Bankers’ Association (BBA), the improvement reflects continued growth from the low levels seen at the end of last year. BBA statistics director, David Dooks, says [...]
The British Bankers’ Association (BBA) has reported that in August, gross mortgage lending by the UK’s High Street banks followed a similar pattern to earlier months of the year. Net lending (gross lending with repayments and redemptions stripped out) returned to trend, increasing by £2.8 billion, compared to a rise of £1.9 billion in July. [...]
M&S Money launches 3% cash ISA
M&S Money has launched an Advantage Cash ISA paying 3 per cent, and which allows transfers in from other ISAs. It can be opened with a minimum deposit of £100 lump sum followed by minimum monthly deposits of £25. The 3% rate is variable, but there is no short-term bonus so the return won’t plummet [...]
Google suspends UK Compare Mortgages site
Google has closed its UK mortgage comparison site which it launched in July last year, after it proved to be less popular than expected. Mortgage comparison sites are designed to allow visitors to compare mortgages quickly and easily without having to visit each lender’s individual site. Google was competing with several well-established comparison sites, including [...]
AA launches ‘black-box’ policy for young drivers
The AA is launching an innovative car insurance policy called Drivesafe which could help younger drivers save up to £850 a year. Younger drivers already pay substantially higher premiums than other motorists and these costs are increasing. A new study by Confused.com suggests insurance costs for younger driver have gone up by 5.7 per cent [...]
ATOL scheme updated to protect online bookers
ATOL, a financial protection scheme managed by the Civil Aviation Authority, is being extended to protect up to six million more holidays a year. The scheme ensures that holiday makers do not lose out financially if a travel company collapses, and that they are not stranded abroad. An increase in the number of holidays booked [...]
Home repossessions lowest for four years
The number of UK homes repossessed fell to 36,200 in 2011, significantly below the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ forecast of 40,000, and lower than 2010 when 37,100 homes were repossessed. With interest rates remaining low and lenders adopting a sympathetic attitude to customers in financial difficulty, repossessions fell to their lowest level since 2007. However, [...]
Monthly pay lasting just 17 days
Workers are running out of money just 17 days after receiving their monthly pay, according to new research by the Halifax bank. This means that the average UK worker spends half the month worrying about money. The study, based on the responses of more than 2,000 adults, found that 10 per cent of workers start [...]
Women disadvantaged by auto-enrolment changes
Government proposals to increase the auto-enrolment threshold to £10,000 could put 1.8 million women at risk of missing out on a pension, the TUC has warned. Under the auto-enrolment scheme, which will be phased in from October, private sector employers will automatically enrol workers between the age of 22 years and the state pension age, [...]
Emergency household repairs company Homeserve is taking longer than expected to get back on track after its operations were suspended last October. The company expected customer numbers to fall by 5% this year but it has increased this estimate to 8% and announced the loss of 200 jobs. It estimates that renewal revenue in 2013 [...]
Sale rumoured for Yorkshire and Clydesdale banks
There is growing speculation that National Australia Bank (NAB) may sell Yorkshire Bank and Clydesdale Bank after the Australian parent company announced a strategic review of the two banks’ operations. The Australian economy is performing well and NAB reported strong profits for the final quarter of 2011 but with the UK economy at a virtual [...]
More women experiencing debt difficulties
Women in Debt, which offers female-focused debt advice, has warned that the number of UK women facing serious debt has grown significantly over recent years. The organisation believes that more women will need advice on solving debt problems in the future because they are building up an unsustainable level of indebtedness. Women in Debt’s director, [...]
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