Metro bank - new customer review

gt94sss2

Metro Bank has issued just 100 mortgages

Regards
Sunil

tagq2

gt94sss2 wrote: »

Metro Bank has issued just 100 mortgages

How many were FT expecting it to issue? How many hundred houses should a bank buy in its first year and with what?

And when it floats, why should we expect it to end up with a class of shareholder which encourages the bank to maintain its founding principles? FD does it by being fairly selective with its choice of customer; Co-op does it by being a (sorta) co-op...

gt94sss2

tagq2 wrote: »

How many were FT expecting it to issue? How many hundred houses should a bank buy in its first year and with what?

No idea - but more than 100 in 15 months, I suspect! The FT article is linked to on the banks website and like it says I suspect the bank has been concentrating more on loans and overdrafts - while concentrating on ' service'.

But not even these products are that competitive. I wonder if this illustrates just how price sensitive customers are. Metro bank have 9 branches now with ambitious targets to expand.

And when it floats, why should we expect it to end up with a class of shareholder which encourages the bank to maintain its founding principles? FD does it by being fairly selective with its choice of customer; Co-op does it by being a (sorta) co-op...

You would expect prospective shareholders to be aware of them before they buy the shares at least..

Regards
Sunil

Lith

Any idea, if Metro bank will open in the north? or is this just an 'London Based bank' ?

callum9999

gt94sss2 wrote: »

No idea - but more than 100 in 15 months, I suspect! The FT article is linked to on the banks website and like it says I suspect the bank has been concentrating more on loans and overdrafts - while concentrating on ' service'.

But not even these products are that competitive. I wonder if this illustrates just how price sensitive customers are. Metro bank have 9 branches now with ambitious targets to expand.

You would expect prospective shareholders to be aware of them before they buy the shares at least..

Regards
Sunil

They may know, but it doesn't mean they care. Perhaps they buy shares with the intention of changing it to maximise their return? Though if a new, small bank started doing the same as the major banks then it would fail - why go with them over the established banks in that case. I think we're safe for a while!

Lith wrote: »

Any idea, if Metro bank will open in the north? or is this just an 'London Based bank' ?

It's a London bank. As long as they are successful, I'm sure they'll expand into the North at some point - but not remotely soon (I'm thinking decades more than years!).

labp04

Hi Lith, we live "up north" but travel in Europe quite a bit and, for sure, it was worth our while to make the trip to a branch of metrobank to open our accounts. Also, it looks as if metrobank will be offering their facilities on line from "early 2012" whatever this means?

Lith

Thank's for replies,

Maybe next time im in london to visit family i'll just pop in the holborn branch ? im sure i can get an account on the day.

pisces_pixie

I opened an account at the Bromley branch last month as additional bank account. The whole process took 45 minutes including trial of debit card. Has no problems with online banking , setting up direct debits ( incl. paypal) or cash withdrawals.

Main reason for opening is the free overseas cash withdrawals . Does anyone have any experience of usage in South Africa ?

alanq

callum9999 wrote: »

It's a London bank. As long as they are successful, I'm sure they'll expand into the North at some point - but not remotely soon (I'm thinking decades more than years!).

They are planning 200+ branches by the end of THIS decade and have already announced locations "coming soon" outside of the M25. (e.g. Maidstone and Guildford). It would be very odd if some of those 200+ branches were not north of Watford.

hippey

Olipro wrote: »

the only time it can be of any use is if you're paying in a cheque issued by someone of the same sort code as you, and even then, for some banks any cheque is considered a house cheque so long as they've issued it regardless of sort code.

House cheques are only ever the same sorting code for instance a cheque drawn on 200318 and paid in at 200318 to a 200318 account counts as a house cheque - paid in anywhere else it becomes an away cheque even if the debit and credit are the same sorting codes.

This big issue is that house cheques clear over night and away cheques take the 6 day cycle to clear, some banks may do it quicker but the terminology is the same.

There is not much need to worry about sort codes now for day to day banking as most of the banks computers are linked nationally.