Masthaven secures first retail banking licence of 2016 as challenger banks keep up the pressure on traditional groups April 21, 2016 Here's proof – if you needed it – that the rise of challenger banks continues. The government has granted its first retail banking licence of the year to Masthaven Bank – and the group is promising to "disrupt the market" with its approach to savings, mortgages and staff. Masthaven Bank received the thumbs up from the Prudential Regulation [...]
Mortgage lending rockets in March 2016 as stamp duty tax changes prompt a borrowing spree April 21, 2016 Mortgage lending ballooned in March as landlords and investors piled into the property market to beat a slew of tax changes which came into effect at the start of April. A total of £25.7bn was borrowed for home purchases in March, according to figures released by the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) this morning – 43 [...]
Another day, another challenger bank win, as TSB profits leap April 21, 2016 Following yesterday's suggestion that challenger banks are steaming ahead, this morning TSB bolstered that, as profits jumped 53 per cent. The figures Pre-tax profits rose 53 per cent from last year to £52.6m in the three months to the end of March, the bank said this morning, while total customer deposits rose 8.4 per cent to £26.8bn. Meanwhile, lending rose 28.3 per cent to £27..4bn, which [...]
London house prices will continue to grow even if the UK leaves the EU, say homeowners April 21, 2016 Parts of London's property market might be stumbling, but that's not stopping the capital's homeowners being the most confident people in the country that Brexit would not affect their house prices. Foolhardy? Maybe. But according to a new survey, London's homeowners expect to see double-digit growth in their property prices over the next six months – [...]
What to expect Mark Carney to be grilled about by the House of Lords today – from Brexit to current account, inflation and Panama Papers April 19, 2016 The most watched man in Threadneedle Street will trundle over to SW1 today to face his annual grilling from the House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee. That’s right, the governor of the Bank of England, Mark Carney, will be up against 13 of the Lords’ sharpest minds, all desperate to peer into the soul of [...]
UK building societies lambast European regulators’ plans to tighten lending rules April 17, 2016 UK BUILDING societies have blasted European regulators' proposals to toughen up lending rules, which they argue would be detrimental to the growth of their businesses . The European Banking Authority (EBA) is considering tightening the necessary leverage ratio, so that building societies will need more capital in order to lend. The proposals are based on [...]
Property bubble shows no sign of popping yet as mortgage lending marches higher April 13, 2016 Mortgage lending grew by one-fifth over the last twelve months as the number of first time buyers, people moving homes, buy-to-let investors and remortgages all grew according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML). In total, £8.7bn was taken out for new mortgages in February 2016, up 21 per cent on last year, while another [...]
House prices: London and regional rental prices climbed higher in March April 13, 2016 London rents rose by 7.7 per cent in the year to March as demand for rental property in the capital remained strong, new research shows. However, HomeLet said that the data comes ahead of reforms that are predicted to have a major impact within the sector, including a stamp duty increase for buy-to-let properties, and could tell [...]
Digital mortgage broker aims to bring market into “21st century” and save consumers £29bn after securing £1.55m in seed funding April 11, 2016 A digital mortgage broker aiming to save consumers up to £29bn a year launched today after securing £1.55m in seed funding. Habito said it was “taking aim at the £95bn mortgage broking market, one of the only pillars of the consumer finance sector yet to benefit from technological disruption”. The startup uses technology to analyse every [...]
These are the hottest 50 fintech companies right now (and half are from London) April 5, 2016 London continues to dominate the world of financial technology with more than half of the hottest fintech startups located in London. Of the 50 startups to make the Fintech50, a comprehensive annual list of the best new businesses disrupting finance and chosen by leading venture capitalists and top tech execs, 29 were spawned in London. The newly [...]