Speculation grows that Barclays will be bailed out as investors 'throw in the towel'

ahai1

Some of the banks are majority state controlled it is just that the government has not decided to take direct control.

There is more than one form of state control for example Channel4 and the BBC are public cooperations but controlled in a different way.

The banks would not dare get rid of cheques in the current climate as the government would not allow them considering that a large majority are owned by the government.

The last time I checked it had a Woolwich sign on it. Mind you I am not sure if they have changed it as I have not paid attention for sometime but it was a rather dodgey branch.

ShelfStacker_3

IIRC cheques still have a fair bit of legal significance with regards to contract law. There'd be a lot of loose ends to be tied up with such things.

Although I agree, pain in the hole.

ahai1

Getting rid of cheques would also cause a problem as there are somethings which can be done by cheque for example the only way to open a Tesco Internet Saver is by cheque and some people are not ready to accept debit or credit cards.

Going back to what Mike said a lot of people perfer branch banking. As time goes on and as the younger generation get older they will become a minority.

Extant

ahai1 wrote: »

Some of the banks are majority state controlled it is just that the government has not decided to take direct control.

The government owning a major stake does not make them "state controlled" - grab a thesaurus, "control" is not a synonym of "own."

More to the point, the government is making deliberate effort not to become directly involved in the running of the banks, hence the establishment of UK Financial Investments.

The banks would not dare get rid of cheques in the current climate as the government would not allow them considering that a large majority are owned by the government.

I don't know why you seem to have trouble believing it, but the banks have no immediate intention of getting rid of cheques. Believe it or not, we talk to each other - and with numerous other organizations - to debate and decide on strategy going forward. Things such as cheques, direct debits, etc. are debated by the banks, and form part of the National Payment Plan.

Currently, that calls for extensive consultation to merely agree on the alternatives to cheques, and said consultation is due to be concluded by EOY 2010. The issues looked at are wide and far ranging, but the key one - the very first point, in fact - is "to ensure that acceptable alternatives are developed and made available so that users are not disadvantaged."

The NPP is developed and set by The Payments Council, which was in turn created by a number of bodies, ranging from the Office of Fair Trading to Which?.

Bottom line: if the banks chose to, they could get rid of cheques rapidly. We're not talking about just the high street banks making this decision, we're talking about numerous smaller banks (in both overall size and/or UK market presence) and other financial services providers - ranging from BoA to Paypal. To think the Government would even argue against them is ludicrous.

However, as has been said - they have no intention of doing that, and they actually work together to manage the decline of cheques so that not only is it orderly and seamless to the customer, but also to benefit the customer. For everyone person that whinges about cheques eventually being withdrawn, there's another to complain about float interest...

The last time I checked it had a Woolwich sign on it. Mind you I am not sure if they have changed it as I have not paid attention for sometime but it was a rather dodgey branch.

"The Woolwich" is a trading name of Barclays and is used solely for our mortgage business: Woolwich branches either closed or were rebranded as Barclays in April 2007. The sign might be there if it's a historical sign (many a London branch still bears the old style eagle, or "Barclays Bank Limited" signs) or it might just be there as an advert.

ahai1

In my book the state ownership is the same as state control as the government could come and tell the banks what to do the threat does exist. Sooner or later they will have to act if the banks continue with their current non landing practices.

noah271007

I agree. I am more concerned that the borrowing binge will continue, if banks start lending back to 2007 levels under govt state control and carry on where we left from. We should start living within our means and start budgeting. House prices will not recover for a couple years, maybe more.

noah271007

Oh by the way, i watched a programme last night that compared the current financial crisis similar to the Great Depression back in the 30's. Quite frightening but it is for real. We are in for a difficult and tough 2-3 years.

ahai1

I agree if they go back to 2007 levels but Brown and Darling want the money back and they are not going to let reckless lending come back. I agree we are headed for the great depression again.

Mike1989

ahai1 wrote: »

Going back to what Mike said a lot of people perfer branch banking. As time goes on and as the younger generation get older they will become a minority.

I can see the point but I can't see it ever becoming a minority. As branches are vital in some cases for opening accounts, eg. showing ID, and opening some accounts, getting mortgage advice, loans etc. So they still have a major role to play for as long as banks are around. Can't see there becoming a case were a branch becomes a minority or people preferring using a branch becomes a minority.

Only time that is the case is if you go to First Direct or Smile which are online banking companies. Tip top service, but I'd rather be with a Halifax or barclays were if I have a problem i can ring either a call centre or pop in branch.

ahai1

Mike all those things you mentioned could be done online or via the internet. I recently verfied my ID for opening a bank account by sending the required stuff in the post.

You can get things like mortgage advise on the phone and you can even get a mortgage online. I can see a time where branches are for a large number of customers becoming a thing of the past. As I have said I very rarely viist a branch.

I was not given an option of postal verifcation by HSBC but if I was I would have verfied my signature by post.

Going to a bank branch does not mean you get a good service. When I went into Barclays for some leaflets they tried to get me to talk to a personal banker. I had to tell them I just wanted the leaflets. On the phone or internet you don't get cornered that way. That is another reason why I will never go into a Barclays branch.