Challenger banks win customers on back of better savings rates than big boys July 6, 2023 More generous savings rates at challenger banks are seeing customers flock to newer players in the market, as pressure grows on big banks
Value of London homes sinks as red hot mortgage rates continue to rattle market July 6, 2023 Some 68 per cent of west London homeowners have seen the value of their property decrease since last November, new data shows, as soaring mortgage rates and a difficult buyer market rattle the capital’s housing sector. As buyer confidence falls due to red hot mortgage rates 7,000 homes across west central London decreased in value [...]
Savings rates: Big banks to meet regulator this week after ‘blatant profiteering’ claims July 4, 2023 Banks will meet with the regulator this week to discuss the savings rates on offer as pressure grows on the UK’s largest lenders to avoid so-called ‘profiteering’. Heads of the largest UK banks – including Lloyds, NatWest, Barclays and HSBC – will meet with the Financial Conduct Authority on Thursday, according to people familiar with [...]
FCA moves fast to let firms provide mortgage breathing space June 30, 2023 The City regulator says it has moved quickly to make rulebook changes, to help give households some relief from rising mortgage rates. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said lenders should make the options available to borrowers clear and accessible. Sheldon Mills, executive director for consumers and competition at the FCA, urged homeowners who are struggling [...]
Rate pain takes its toll as home sales tumbled almost 30 per cent in May June 30, 2023 Home sales tumbled by 27 per cent in May compared with the same month a year earlier, according to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) figures. Across the UK, 80,020 transactions were recorded in May 2023, which was also 3 per cent lower than in April 2023. HMRC’s report said the big fall compared with May [...]
House price growth faces ‘significant drag’ from rate rises but London remains ‘buoyant’ June 30, 2023 House price growth may face “significant drag” from high interest rates as fresh figures show they remained relatively stable in June despite yearly growth being negative. The latest Nationwide House Price Index show house prices remained broadly flat in June, but down 2.5 per cent compared to last year, owing in part to 13 successive [...]
Mortgages: Number of people securing a home shot up weeks before BoE hiked rates June 29, 2023 Mortgage approvals continued to show signs of improvement in May, rising to 55,500 for the month as a whole up across the UK – up from 49,000 for the month of April, new data shows. The data provided by the Bank of England (Boe) is a fresh kick in the teeth for prospective buyers, who [...]
Big US banks pass Fed stress tests months after SVB collapse in sign they’d ‘weather a severe recession’ June 29, 2023 The largest banks in the US sailed through the Federal Reserve’s annual stress tests, suggesting they would survive a sharp economic downturn. The Fed said the results demonstrate that large banks are “well positioned to weather a severe recession and continue to lend to households and businesses even during a severe recession.” Despite projected losses [...]
Mark Kleinman on banks, Ocado and London’s IPO market June 29, 2023 Mark Kleinman is City editor at Sky News Politics could push ministers to punish banks This is a cost of living crisis, not a banking crisis: if I had a fiver for every time a senior bank executive had said that to me over the last 18 months, I’d never need another mortgage of my [...]
Jeremy Hunt to meet CMA, Ofgem, Ofwat and Ofcom over ‘profiteering’ concerns June 26, 2023 Jeremy Hunt will ask industry regulators what they are doing about any companies exploiting rampant inflation by raising prices. The Chancellor is set to meet the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), and the watchdogs for energy, water and communications on Wednesday. He will press them on whether there is a profiteering problem in their sectors [...]