Bank of England to hike FSCS protection from £85,000 to £110,000 March 31, 2025 UK depositors will receive greater protection from the Bank of England as the amount of money covered by a nationwide deposit guarantee scheme is set to rise to £110,000. The scheme provides financial protection to depositors in case banks, building societies, and credit unions become insolvent. It is funded by a levy paid by regulated [...]
Atom Bank wants to inspire staff back to the office March 10, 2025 The boss of Atom Bank said he wants to inspire his staff back to the office as he announced plans to relocate its headquarters to Newcastle. Chief executive Mark Mullen has confirmed plans to move its head office from The Rivergreen Centre in Durham to The Pattern Shop in Newcastle. The Pattern Shop was where [...]
Co-op Bank mortgage applications soar following takeover March 7, 2025 Mortgage applications boomed at Coventry Building Society’s new subsidiary, The Co-op Bank, in its first batch of financial results since the acquisition. The bank recorded £116.2m in pre-tax profit for 2024, down from the £120.9m booked in 2023 but in line with company expectations. It said lower mortgage margins and increased savings rates weighed on net interest income, dampening [...]
OakNorth: Shareholders to be handed £40m as US expansion boosts profit March 6, 2025 Profit at challenger bank OakNorth has surged thanks to its expansion into the USA, it has been revealed. The London-headquartered digital bank has reported a pre-tax profit of £214.8m for 2024, up from the £187.3m it posted for the previous 12 months. Over the year, OakNorth provided more than £2.1bn in gross new lending to [...]
UK banks differ from US on AI strategy February 20, 2025 Banks in the UK are more likely to focus artificial intelligence (AI) strategy on improving customer experience compared to their US rivals, a new report has revealed. NTT Data’s ‘Intelligent Banking in the Age of AI’ found 52 per cent of UK banks were using AI to enhance customer services, rather than cut jobs. This [...]
Analysts say ‘Buy’ Natwest shares after annual results February 14, 2025 Analysts have slapped a ‘Buy’ rating on Natwest shares after the bank’s annual results beat expectations. Peel Hunt analysts Robert Sage and Stuart Duncan said the lender’s strong performance in 2024 increased “conviction that market expectations can be delivered”. Natwest reported a £6.2bn pre-tax profit for 2024, up 0.3 per cent on 2023’s headline figure, [...]
Natwest skims past profit expectations February 14, 2025 Natwest narrowly beat analysts’ annual profit expectations after posting a bump in its consumer lending. The FTSE 100 lender posted a £6.2bn pre-tax profit, ahead of £6.1bn pencilled in by analysts and up 0.3 per cent on 2023. Net loans to customers hit £368.5bn, an increase of £12.9bn, which reflected Natwest’s acquisition of Metro Bank’s [...]
Barclays puts aside £90m for motor finance scandal February 13, 2025 Barclays announced in its annual results it had set aside £90m to cover potential motor finance payouts, amidst ongoing disputes over the misconduct row. This follows the landmark Court of Appeal’s October 2024 judgment, ruling in favour of three consumers and determining that lenders were liable for paying undisclosed commission to car dealers who acted [...]
‘Temporary share price glitch’ sends Barclays shares lower February 13, 2025 Shares in Barclays slumped on Thursday morning after the bank posted its annual results. The Big Four bank reported a £8.1bn pre-tax profit, up 24 per cent from 2024, surpassing analyst expectations of £8.07bn. However, its stock dropped five per cent, as low as 290.34p after the market opened. Still, despite the drop, Peel Hunt [...]
Barclays beats expectations after Tesco Bank takeover February 13, 2025 Barclays surpassed analyst expectations in its annual results report on Thursday, after a strong year for its investment banking arm and day one benefits of its Tesco Bank takeover. The FTSE 100 bank reported a pretax profit of £1.7bn in the fourth quarter, ahead of the £1.62bn expected by analysts. For 2024 as a whole, the [...]