Virgin Money IPO: Challenger bank to float on stock market October 2, 2014 Challenger bank Virgin Money is floating on the stock market, chief executive Jayne-Anne Gadhia announced yesterday. The sale of the 25 per cent stake in the bank is expected to value the lender at between £1.5bn and £2bn. Major owners Virgin Financial Investments and US investment guru Wilbur Ross’ investment fund will sell down parts of [...]
Vince Cable’s plan to guarantee a challenger bank’s business loans September 24, 2014 One challenger bank will get a boost from the government when the British Business Bank guarantees its loans to small firms, under a pilot scheme to be launched at the end of October. It is Vince Cable’s latest plan to increase lending to SMEs, by taking risk away from the bank and on to the [...]
Challenger bank Aldermore kicks off new wave of stock flotations September 22, 2014 Challenger bank Aldermore wants to raise more than £75m in a stock market flotation, the small business and mortgage specialist announced yesterday. The flood of initial public offerings (IPOs) earlier this year had dried up with the combination of uncertainty over the Scottish referendum and the annual summer slowdown. But after last week’s No vote, [...]
Challenger bank Aldermore announces plans to IPO September 22, 2014 Five-year-old Aldermore Bank has today announced plans to list on the stock market, saying it wants to raise £75m "to support the medium-term growth of the business". The bank, which focuses on lending to small businesses and homeowners, was one of several "challenger banks" launched during the recession when its founders saw a gap in [...]
Just 15 per cent think challenger banks are better than big lenders August 26, 2014 New banks want to establish themselves as a fresh alternative to the dominant high street banks which have taken the blame for the financial crisis. But it is a tough ask. For new research out today from U-Switch suggests the public is not impressed with their offerings so far. Just 15 per cent think the [...]
Accelerating competition: How to level the playing field for challenger banks June 24, 2014 THERE is something that politicians and bankers both agree upon – we believe that greater competition improves the service and the products that customers get. We’ve heard ideas about increasing competition in banking from across the political spectrum. Today, the BBA is adding to that debate with some new ideas on promoting competition by levelling [...]
Banks want easier capital rules to let challengers compete fully June 23, 2014 UNFAIR capital rules are stopping challenger banks competing with big lenders by forcing them to hold bigger buffers against the same loans, the British Bankers’ Association said today. The biggest banks can hold less capital than smaller lenders against the same debts, because they have enough data to prove to regulators exactly how safe the [...]
Challenger bank Shawbrook swings to profit after three years June 3, 2014 SMALL business specialist Shawbrook Bank swung into profit in 2013, its full year results show today. The bank is considering a stock market flotation in 2015, pushed back slightly from the late 2014 date thought to have been considered previously. The lender was formed from three older firms by RBS private equity arm in 2011 and [...]
OneSavings Bank hires ex-Lloyds and Close Brothers execs to board May 14, 2014 Onesavings Bank, which plans to float on the London Stock Exchange next month, has beefed up its board by hiring two more industry veterans, the lender announced yesterday. Ex-Lloyds executive Graham Allatt and former Close Brothers director Mary McNamara have both joined the bank’s board. McNamara was formerly the group’s commercial division, and previously worked [...]
Aldermore: We have outgrown challenger label April 2, 2014 ALDERMORE’S chief executive yesterday claimed the lender has outgrown the challenger bank label and is a now a well-established player in the market. The bank reported profits of £22.4m in 2013 yesterday, smashing its previous earnings of £1.5m in 2012. Its lending volumes soared by 64 per cent in the year to £3.4bn, which is [...]