Rock gets go-ahead to split October 28, 2009 CHANCELLOR Alistair Darling ruled out the prospect of a quick sale of Northern Rock yesterday, despite winning backing from the European Union to split the troubled lender into a “good” and “bad” bank ahead of a sell-off. EU competition commissioner Neelie Kroes approved the government’s proposals to split the Newcastle-based bank, led by chairman Ron [...]
Number of US banking failures surges through the 100 mark October 25, 2009 THE number of US banks going bust has passed 100 this year, the highest rate of failure in 17 years. The subprime crisis continues to wreak havoc, with US regulators shutting seven more banks over the weekend. Three banks in Florida alone were wound up bringing the total of failed lenders to 106 in 2009, [...]
A helping hand to lift you on to the property ladder October 22, 2009 GETTING on the property ladder is notoriously difficult in London. But if you’re one of the thousands of young professionals earning a decent salary – but still not able to fork out the post-credit crunch minimum deposit of 20 per cent in order to attain a mortgage- then you may have more options than you [...]
Availability of credit improving but lending remains subdued October 22, 2009 THE flow of lending to UK businesses improved markedly in August but still remained in negative territory, the Bank of England said yesterday. Its monthly Trends in Lending report also showed that, following robust capital market issuance over recent months, net funds raised by UK businesses weakened in August. The report said repayments outstripped new [...]
House sales up, says taxman October 21, 2009 HOUSE sales in the UK lifted over the summer despite the downturn, according to figures released yesterday by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC). Sales of residential properties costing more than £40,000 rose from 80,000 in August to 82,000 in September. And sales in the three months to the end of September were 11 per cent [...]
Recovery in housing demand sees mortgage lending rise October 20, 2009 MORTGAGE lending rose by two per cent in September, although the total amount lent was still 27 per cent lower than in the same month last year. Official figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) show £12.5bn was lent for mortgages in September, thanks to recovering levels of demand for housing. The figure compared [...]
Dutch lenders hit as DSB Bank goes bankrupt October 19, 2009 A Dutch court last night declared aggressive mortgage lender DSB Bank bankrupt, leaving other Dutch lenders liable for up to €3.25bn (£2.96bn) in deposit guarantees. The finance ministry rejected a last-minute rescue proposal that included a €100m injection of government cash because of the risk it would disappear “into a black hole”. The bank’s founder [...]
FSA outlines its crackdown on mortgages October 19, 2009 CITY watchdog the Financial Services Authority (FSA) has unveiled a crackdown on the mortgage-lending market that includes plans to ban the self-certification loan industry. FSA chief executive Hector Sants unveiled a range of proposals including a ban on the self-cert, or “liar loans” industry, where borrowers are able to get mortgages without giving proof of [...]
Liar loans set to be banned October 18, 2009 THE Financial Services Authority will today unveil reforms to the mortgage market, including rules to ensure that they are only given to those who can keep up the repayments. Self-certified mortgages – where a borrower is not required to prove their income – are expected to be banned as part of the watchdog’s review of [...]
RBS in EC branch sale threat October 14, 2009 EUROPEAN Commission (EC) lawmakers may force Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) to sell off 312 of its RBS-branded bank branches, under new rules for firms receiving state bailouts. Neelie Kroes, the EC competition commissioner, is considering forcing the bank to slash its small business banking operations by 10 per cent. This would be achieved if [...]