OneSavings Bank reckons the Co-op Bank sale may fail and is ready to restart talks if it does March 16, 2017 Challenger OneSavings Bank will reignite its interest in buying part of Co-op Bank because it expects the beleaguered lender’s sale of itself to fall through. Co-op Bank previously opened its books to OneSavings, which today reported better than expected annual results. Negotiations were put on ice when Co-op Bank put itself up for sale, after its US hedge fund backers [...]
New stamp duty rules annihilated buy-to-let mortgage borrowing in January March 14, 2017 The amount borrowed by prospective landlords fell 16 per cent in the year to January, as strict new rules on buy-to-let homes took their toll. Figures by the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) showed would-be landlords borrowed £800m to buy new homes in January, down from £1.4bn the year before, and £900m in December. The [...]
Co-op Bank stems losses to £477m but says legacy problems and lower for longer interest rates led to sale March 9, 2017 Co-operative Bank today said legacy issues and low interest rates had dragged on performance and prompted the lender's owners to put the bank up for sale. Although the bank reduced annual losses of £477m from £611m in 2015, it took a further £60m hit from its merger with Britannia Building Society and was slapped with an £82m charge following [...]
RBS’ chief exec Ross McEwan just got awarded shares worth £1.2m in the loss-making bank March 8, 2017 Royal Bank of Scotland's chief executive was awarded £1.2m worth of shares this afternoon, as benefits from the loss-making lender's long-term incentive plans (LTIPs) were paid out. Ross McEwan, who took over at the helm of the taxpayer-backed bank in October 2013, was vested a total of 512,509 shares under the incentive scheme at £2.389 a pop, [...]
Barclays is cutting more than 180 jobs as it shuts the doors on its mortgage unit in Wales March 8, 2017 Barclays is cutting more than 180 jobs, as it shuts down its mortgage centre in Wales. "Barclays is working hard to meet customer needs and keep the customer at the heart of what we do," a spokesperson for the bank said. "Part of this work is ensuring that our contact centre site processes are working [...]
Deutsche Bank to raise €8bn through rights issue, as it announces a slew of restructuring plans March 5, 2017 Deutsche Bank revealed today it plans to bolster its capital by around €8bn (£6.9bn) through an issue of new shares. The German lender also revealed a slew of restructuring plans, including keeping its Postbank division, streamlining its business model to focus on three key units of private and commercial banking, asset management and corporate and investment banking, and listing [...]
There are now 11 house-hunters for every property on the market February 27, 2017 The UK's housing crisis is getting worse, new figures have suggested – with 11 house-hunters vying for every property on the market. Research by the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) suggested an average of 425 prospective buyers were registered to each estate agent branch in the UK in January, 10 per cent higher than [...]
Barclays to install ex-boss of B&Q-owner Kingfisher Sir Ian Cheshire as chair of its UK operations February 26, 2017 Barclays is set to announce Sir Ian Cheshire as chair of its UK ringfenced operations tomorrow. Under the ringfencing rules, banks have until 2019 to split their retail units away from their investment divisions. Sky News, which first reported the news of Cheshire's impending appointment, revealed the Prudential Regulation Authority, the banking sector watchdog, has now [...]
Opinion: If you’re an Airbnb host, there are a number of legal potholes that can catch you out if you’re not careful February 24, 2017 Airbnb is now a hugely popular online platform connecting would-be landlords (or “hosts”) with tenants (or “guests”). The site allows for the vetting of both hosts and guests through online reviews and provides hosts with insurance in case things go wrong. But that still leaves a number of legal snags, however, which can be easily [...]
Rightmove revenues jump as it attracts a record number of customers – but chief exec steps down February 24, 2017 Take that, rivals: Rightmove beat analyst expectations on almost every level with its 2016 results – another sign worries about the property market after the EU referendum were misplaced. The figures Revenues rose 15 per cent to £220m in 2016, with underlying operating profit rising 15 per cent to £166.2m. The company said it had attracted a record number of customers, with its [...]