Brits scramble to borrow more than £100bn with average loan hitting £5k as cost of living crisis deepens August 31, 2022 Brits will borrow £101.1b on new credit cards, loans, overdrafts and other forms of new credit arrangements in the next 12 months, new data shows today, Research undertaken by YouGov on behalf of financial services review platform Smart Money People, found that 71 per cent of people currently have less disposable income than they would [...]
Half of Brits not received a pay rise in over a year despite inflation skyrocketing August 30, 2022 Nearly half of all UK workers have been waiting more than 12 months for a pay rise, as inflation hits 10.1 per cent. As the cost of living crisis puts pressure on household finances, research from Aspire – a recruitment agency – has found that 32 per cent of workers will look to change roles in the [...]
Millions of Brits face £100 per month budget shortfall as merciless cost-of-living crisis deepens May 14, 2022 Millions of households could be left around £100 per month short of what they need to cover their spending in just two years’ time on average, as costs rise faster than incomes, a new report suggests. By 2024, average weekly incomes could increase to £680 by 2024 – while average weekly UK household spending may [...]
Your money in 2022: Personal finance trends to keep an eye on this year January 16, 2022 What personal finance trends are likely to shape 2022? New research shared with City A.M. looks at the sentiment and behaviours for this year. The pandemic, mixed with wider economic issues and the rising cost of living, appears to have had an effect on Brits’ relationship with money, because the findings from consumer research platform [...]
999 for banks: Lenders set to launch customer hotline to tackle fraud September 28, 2021 UK banks are preparing to launch an emergency hotline – dubbed the industry’s answer to 999 – later this week, in an effort to tackle surging levels of fraud. Customers who fear that they have been targeted by fraudsters imitating their bank, or other common guises such as HM Revenue & Customs or a parcel [...]
Exclusive: CEO of Britain’s newest bank on the long road to recovery June 23, 2021 The pandemic forced the entire economy to move online, with Zoom and Skype usage skyrocketing. London’s financial services space was no exception, leading to a vast uptake in online banking services. One online lender that obtained its UK banking licence in June of last year, at the height of the pandemic, is Zopa, bringing a [...]
Today final day for borrowers to apply for payment holiday on mortgages, cards and loans March 31, 2021 Borrowers have until the end of today to apply for a payment holiday on products such as mortgages, personal loans and credit cards. Eligible customers who have not taken a payment holiday before, and those who have previously had a payment deferral totalling less than six months, have until tonight to apply. Payment holidays are [...]
Measures to suppress Covid-19 are causing untold damage to students and young people September 30, 2020 The motto of the Young Money Blog is “don’t get mad — get informed”. But in recent weeks and months, I’ve found it hard not to get mad. As we try to head into an uncertain and bleak winter, emergency laws designed to curb the spread of Covid-19 are fast becoming a moral and economic [...]
Ethical investment funds — not making the grade? April 1, 2020 Survey after survey has shown that people want their money invested ethically. But what does that mean? And, crucially, do so-called “ethical” funds provide what savers are looking for, or is there a mismatch here? Ethically-labelled investment funds have a list of exclusions — various types of company that they will not invest in because [...]
DEBATE: Is now the time for the UK to trial a temporary Universal Basic Income? March 18, 2020 Is now the time for the UK to trial a temporary Universal Basic Income? YES, says Julian Jessop, an economics fellow at the Institute of Economic Affairs. In normal times, cash payments regardless of individual need would be too expensive, poorly targeted, and distortionary. It is therefore right to use existing means-tested benefits (notably universal [...]