BEWARE! THE BANKS ARE OUT TO GET YOU!

[Stanley]

Much the same attitude exists towards the IT Risk Management sections as well. They are seen as a hindrance and an unnecessary expense because they interfere with cunning plans like algorithms that manufacture dodgy derivatives which are initially good earners.Janet once told me the only question they were asked was 'will it make a profit?'.

[Tizer]

Sadly, the Co-op bank is preparing to meet its maker...
`Hopes fade for Co-op Bank turnaround plan' LINK
"The Bank of England has placed the Co-op Bank under "intensive supervision" as survival options for the ethically-based lender dwindle. The BBC understands contingency plans to ensure the "orderly failure" of the 150 year old bank are well advanced. Co-op Bank customers will be protected whatever happens, but professional investors took a beating on Wednesday..."

Remember Paul Flowers?

[Stanley]

Only too well Tiz. I saw this report also and reflected what a sad commentary it is on the state of management ethics in the financial industry when what used to be a mutual bank founded on behalf of the members is reduced to being yet one more failing institution. Greed, dishonesty and outright law-breaking litter it's recent history and now the vultures are preparing to pick over the carcass. So typical of many things we see today.....

[Stanley]

One of the first effects of Brexit is that Lloyd's of London are moving a small part of their insurance business to Brussels. A small but significant cloud on the horizon for the City.

[Tizer]

EU regulators have blocked London Stock Exchange's £21bn merger with German stock exchange Deutsche Boerse. Investment banks, including Barclays, Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan were set to share a payout worth £97.7 million and will still enjoy a big payday, say The Times.

[Stanley]

I saw that report and also the general comments that the whole affair has been incredibly badly managed and expensive. More incompetence in high financial circles?

[Stanley]

A new report says that Lloyd's Bank had eve3idence of the £1billion fraud that resulted in customers being forced into bankruptcy well before the actual court action, something they have always denied.
RBS is spending eye-watering amounts fighting its own shareholders.
Barclay's are under scrutiny again because of the Middle Eastern bail out in 2008.
Your money is safe in their hands?

[Stanley]

HERE'S an interesting initiative but don't hold your breath lads! It will never happen. It seems that the Financial Regulator has finally woken up to the horrendous levels of personal debt (and still rising) as hard pressed families use any credit they have to keep their heads above water. This of course doesn't include those who are using the plethora of high interest lenders advertised every evening on our TV sets. Indebted card holders are the best earners for the card companies. I think something more imaginative and wide ranging may be needed....

[Stanley]

The Panorama programme last night reported disturbing news about who knew what and when about the manipulation of the LIBOR rate. See THIS for the BBC report that broke the news. This new evidence shows that the pressure came from the top and casts doubts on the prison sentences that have been handed out. As we have often commented, the top brass have suspiciously clean hands in these cases, the punishment falls lower down in the ranks. No high ranking management have ever been arraigned and gaoled. Time for another look at this perhaps.

[Tizer]

About 80% of people now buy their car on a Personal Contract Plan (PCP). It allows them to have a more expensive car. The downside is it means the car companies have been able to raise their prices.

[Stanley]

And someone somewhere who is administering the scheme. As always, in the end it has to come out of the end-user's pocket. I am convinced that this is why things get more complicated these days, someone somewhere manufacturing an opportunity to make money. Bit like the 'paperless office', remember that joke? There is more paper today than ever there was in the past. I remember my mate John Ingoe telling me that today, for every repair job on a certificated pressure vessel, he reckoned each had to have about 40 A4 pages in triplicate covering every aspect of the job including method and H&S requirements. His cure was to hire a manager to deal with it and take the cost out of the jobs.....

[Stanley]

The increase in Insurance Premium Tax takes effect today and rises to 12%. This is reckoned to cost the 'average family' an extra £50 per annum. The view has been expressed that this is a tax on the companies not the customers and the hope is that they won't pass it on.... As if we didn't know!

[Stanley]

I saw a warning the other day about the dangers of leasing cars and accessing the capital in your house by a mortgage type arrangement. I must admit that I don't quite understand the linkage but the warning was clear, that capital funds are increasingly moving into this sector and lobbying the government for more freedom and this could be dangerous in the future. My gut feeling is that this is correct. I have heard some of the horror stories about managing the end of a car lease and perhaps the same traps exist with houses.

[Big Kev]

I saw a warning the other day about the dangers of leasing cars and accessing the capital in your house by a mortgage type arrangement. I must admit that I don't quite understand the linkage but the warning was clear, that capital funds are increasingly moving into this sector and lobbying the government for more freedom and this could be dangerous in the future. My gut feeling is that this is correct. I have heard some of the horror stories about managing the end of a car lease and perhaps the same traps exist with houses.

I have seen advertising for 'Equity Release', the mortgage type arrangement you mention. Sounds like a bit of a scam to me with only the company offering it being the only party to benefit.

[plaques]

Sounds a bit like a secured loan. Link. The money or stuff you are buying is set against some other asset. In this case your house.

[Tizer]

The PCP loans for cars are heaven for the manufacturers and dealers. The customer goes back to you after X years and trades it in for the next PCP car. But they knock off value for extra mileage (anything above what was agreed in your deal) and for any blemishes, faults etc. Also you have to have it regularly serviced by them. For the dealers its win-win...not only do they sell a car and tie in a customer but they get commission from the lender company too.

Equity release for houses has been around for a long time now. It allows someone, usually elderly, to release funds from their asset - a useful thing for those who are classed as asset rich, cash poor. At the beginning there were some terrible scams but then regulations were brought in for some types of equity release. Whatever, it's usually a bad deal from an overall financial point of view, particularly if someone wants to leave an inheritance.

[Stanley]

I think the report was triggered by possible easing of regulation being lobbied for. Sounds like the pensions scam all over again.....

[Tizer]

It's all adding to the burden of assets that are not owned by people but being paid for on loans. If or when the bubble bursts there's going to be a lot of people in shock when they find they can no longer afford the goods that they've been used to. They're living in a world of phantom wealth and I don't mean the rich but rather the ordinary people who are living beyond their means on loans.

[chinatyke]

They're living in a world of phantom wealth and I don't mean the rich but rather the ordinary people who are living beyond their means on loans.

But this is today's lifestyle. Remember when HP was a new thing? I look at my eldest stepdaughter who is exceptionally intelligent but lives this 'buy now,pay later' lifestyle and the only way out of debt is to win the lottery, marry a rich man or die.

[Stanley]

Karl Marx warned us about the danger 150 years ago..... Noticeable that the Tories never mention the rising tide of debt even though their stated aim is that people should be responsible for themselves. No wonder, 'The Economic Miracle' is founded on debt.
I've just been listening to a report on how long most families could survive on their savings if they lost their job. It's frighteningly low and can only get worse as real incomes fall due to changes in the jobs market, increased inflation and the risk of an interest rise. This could be one of the reasons why retail results are falling and domestic consumption financed by debt is a big factor in the 'economic miracle'. This is just one of the small black clouds on the horizon and only the insanely optimistic can believe that Brexit, hard or soft, will do anything to improve matters. No wonder the Tories went for a snap poll.....

[Stanley]

When Theresa May was Home secretary she was pushing for the functions of the Serious Fraud Office to be rolled up into the proposed National Crime Agency. Some functions like the Assets Recovery operation have already been transferred but only the budget and not the staff. The fear is that the same will be done with the SFO and their budget vanish. The odds are that if she retains control this is what will happen and the SFO will lose any independence it had. Even George Osborne was against this......

[Stanley]

Nothing on the web yet but breaking news that four former Barclays bank directors including the CEO have been charged by the Serious Fraud Office over the circumstances of the Qatar bail-out of the bank in 2008.

[Tizer]

At last the regulators are beginning to take to task the bosses of the banks. I wonder if the bosses will squirm out of it?

[Stanley]

One thing is certain Tiz. They have enough money to hire the best barristers!
Question is though, will the SFO survive being incorporated into the National Crime Agency? One of May's pet projects.....

[Whyperion]

SFO integration appears to have been dropped. The SFO appears to have had new leadership in recent years and it is that which has given it the appetite and competance to bring prosecution cases in complex situations