Chancellor should warn all UK depositors to close Icelandic based deposit accounts

antilles

I guess the question is, can the FSCS afford to pay the deposits for another failed bank?

nzseries1

wadeall wrote: »

Iceland has effectively stolen GBP4.5bn from the UK taxpayer through Icesave and will not honour any KE deposits once it too goes bust.

How many times does it have to be said. KE is the UK offshoot of the bank and as such it is 100% the FSCS' responsibility to pay out, not the Icelandic government's. Please get your facts right before posting.

codger

jp01 wrote: »

Are we in Alice in Wonderland?

Have we not seen that a govt backed guarantee is worthless.

It isn't irresponisble it is prudent and sensible advice.

Are you Alice in Wonderland though, that's the question.

Reality is, you're yet another poster to MSE -- and my God, this forum's now riddled with 'em: have they all suddenly arrived from the eBay chat boards? -- who seems incapable of understanding the following:

THE FINANCIAL SERVICES COMPENSATION SCHEME IN THE UK IS NOT A "WORTHLESS GOVERNMENT BACKED GUARANTEE"

KAUPTHING EDGE UK SAVINGS ARE PROTECTED UP TO £50,000 BY THE UK SCHEME

KAUPTHING EDGE UK SAVINGS ARE PROTECTED HERE IN EXACTLY THE SAME WAY AS ANY AND EVERY OTHER UK FSA-REGULATED INSTITUTION

Of course, if you do want everyone on MSE to withdraw their savings from every institution covered the FSCS, then yes. You are indeed as barking mad as the Mad Hatter.

Then again, if out of utter ignorance your post was intended to mean that you think Kaupthing Edge deposits are actually covered by Icelandic Government guarantee then, well, yes. . .

You're still as barking mad as the Mad Hatter.

And I'm really, really being polite here.

nilrem_2

It looks as if the decision has been taken by AD for you, KE deposits are now with ING direct!

occamsrazor

jp01 wrote: »

Are we in Alice in Wonderland?

Have we not seen that a govt backed guarantee is worthless.

It isn't irresponisble it is prudent and sensible advice.

Actually, I think today with the Icesave announcement by Darling that we've just found out that the UK Govt-backed guarantee is pretty bloody awesome, even going beyond its obligations in the case of Icesave and guaranteeing all deposits for UK Icesave customers, when strictly they could have been left to hang.

Tell British Icesave customers who've just had their !!!!!! saved by the FSCS guarantee that "a govt backed guarantee is worthless".

Kaupthing UK is fully covered by that same guarantee.

LesU

Thank goodness ING have ridden to the rescue. I withdrew £5000 this morning from KE, but still have another 15K with them. The point is, not that they are protected, but that they were highly likely to go the same way as Icesave. I've been stung with frozen assets in Icesave, which hopefully I will get back, but I didn't want the rest of my assets getting stuck in the same way in KE.
You do need a bit of liquidity in these times.

KTF

The KE account is a UK based just like Abbey and B&B even though they are owned by a Spanish company.

EalingSaver

Now what is Alice in wonderland is this.....

How many people here I wonder (including me) first started out their adventures on getting a better savings rate than their 'normal' bank offerred by putting their money with ING Direct when they first launched in the UK? And then as they reneged on their 'simple, 1 high interest rate' promises, moved out to the likes of IceSave, and then (in my case) also to KE so to spread out the risk....and Oh, look, I'm back with ING..

Head is spinning.

And for the person who I think said they couldn't log into KE, I just have, (only because someone said they couldn't....)

Mr_Cynical

Having read quite a few of the replies from the so called experts who work for MoneySavingExpert.com they are about as realiable and useful as a chocolate fire guard. You might as well ask a 5 year old child. There are lots of other comparison sites and I encourage everyone to use them. The people who work for MoneySavingsExpert.com including Martin Lewis are not doing it out of the goodness of their heart and I expect they received a massive fee from Icesave for promoting their accounts. I expect I will get the usual vitreolic replies from the members of the Martin Lewis Appreciation Society now.

Rafter

Despite the cost to the UK economy, I think that guaranteeing all deposits with Icesave and now the presumably forced sale of KE deposits to ING is the right thing to do.

However, there must be some consequences to ensure consumers are aware of the risks they are potentially taking by plumping for the highest rate, rather than established, safer players.

These should include:

An up front levy on branches of overseas banks who want to take deposits in the UK.

Much closes scrutiny by the FSA of the UK operations of overseas banks to ensure their lending, solvency and liquidity are at least equal to UK based competitors.

A cultural shift in the UK both by journalists and consumers that just because someone offers the highest rate, they aren't necessarily the best and that consumers should spread their finances around between national savings, UK based banks and building societies and then perhaps more exotic banks that have only existed for a few years!

R.