Blogs
Adam Aiken
ICB report spells good news for consumers
At last, there could be some good news for bank customers.
The big lines that emerged from the Independent Commission on Banking’s report concerned the ringfencing of the banks’ retail operations, and the call for extra funds they would need to hold as a buffer in case of a future financial crisis.
But there were also a number of other ideas put forward that should help improve our overall high-street banking experience.
One of these is the ICB’s desire to open up the market to greater competition.
The likes of NBNK have been looking to get a piece of the action for some time, and the commission’s report has confirmed its view that Lloyds Banking Group should sell more of more of its branches than the 632 it is already planning to dispose of.
The ICB wants a new player on the high street to have a market share of at least 6pc of the current-account market, taking the number of major retail banks to six.
On the face of it, having six major players instead of five might not seem like a huge leap forward...
Peter Sharkey
Must we sell the Post Office on the cheap?
Though governments have a truly atrocious record when it comes to running businesses as profit-making concerns, not every single commercial enterprise owned by the state should necessarily be privatised...
Robert Clarke
Investors beware: history shows that bubbles burst
Should the opportunity present itself, you must visit Tate Britain and seek out an engraving by Edward Matthew Ward called A Scene in Change Alley, painted in 1847...
