MSE News: Euro crisis - How safe is Santander?

MSE_Martin

bubbles0169 wrote: »

does anyone know if it were to go how long would it take to get my savings back through compensation? it an ISA being used to save for my wedding!

Actually the FSCS has worked on an electronic system and said it'll try and do it within a month (if not quicker) and past history shows this is likely to be do-able in most cases.

MSE_Martin

To those asking - why write this guide why not barclays, etc.

Simple. Over the last few weeks I have been emailed, tweeted, facebooked and stopped in the street by ordinary members of the public hearing the news about the PIGS countrys and asking about Santander. So we are answering the questions. I have not been asked those questions about the other banks.

opinions4u

MSE_Martin wrote: »

To those asking - why write this guide why not barclays, etc.

Simple. Over the last few weeks I have been emailed, tweeted, facebooked and stopped in the street by ordinary members of the public hearing the news about the PIGS countrys and asking about Santander. So we are answering the questions. I have not been asked those questions about the other banks.

The content of the article is fine Mr Lewis.

I just think the headline is panic inducing.

Some people don't read further than the headline.

ses6jwg

temporary1 wrote: »

I transferred all my savings out of Santander last week .
Everybody will react to this news in their own way and according to their own conscience.
Minimise your exposure to the risk as best you can, then safely watch as all of the financial world's smoke and mirror deceptions, and house-of-cards banks, come tumbling down.
Tik-Tok, Tik-tok.
Forewarned is forearmed.

You are mental. If the financial world collapses it won't matter if your money is in a bank or under your bed. If a bank as large as Santander went bust your cash is worthless.

hermante wrote: »

A lot of people are wondering why Santander is being singled out. Well, unlike Lloyds or Barclays, Santander is regarded as a Spanish (= foreign) bank, and we all see Spain being in trouble on the news etc. Not everyone realises or understands that Santander UK is a UK bank.

Correct. But they are misinformed and headlines like the above don't help. Although the parent company is a Spanish bank, the UK subsidiary has less exposure to the Eurozone than most other UK banks.

oldvicar wrote: »

Isn't Santander UK still a subsidiary of a Spanish bank?

If the parent were to be in trouble, would it affect its UK bank in any way? Has the parent lent it any money?

Santander UK is operated as a UK business. It operates under its own banking license and its covered by the FSCS.

To put it simply, Santander UK has its own seperate mortgage, savings and investment book. Money taken in within the UK from UK depositors, only goes out to UK borrowers.

In terms of Santander as a whole, they are rated by Global Finance as the 10th Safest Bank in the world

http://www.gfmag.com/tools/best-banks/11341-worlds-50-safest-banks-2011.html#axzz1aVmMBDNL

Note that HSBC is ranked 16th.

47% of their profit comes from emerging markets, 17% from the UK, and around 12% from Spain and Portugal.

pineapple

I think we may be underestimating what is happening. I believe the whole global financial house of cards is going to come tumbling down. Personally I am not holding my breath for any government guarantee should this happen. Or for speedy payments if we do get them. And if there is a panic run on banks we will see cash machine lock downs and a big sorry mess. Remember the queues for Northern Rock? We ain't seen nothing yet. So it is always wise to keep an emergency cash fund at home. But the best move of all is to stock up on everything you would normally buy with a long shelf life. Given the rate at which things are going up - and prospects for hyperinflation even - converting at least some savings to essentials is the safest and best investment. It will pay you better than any ISA.
Read this US centric but still relevant article 'The Great Collapse'.
http://www.zerohedge.com/contributed/great-collapse-has-officially-begun
And go to 'What should I do' on here.
http://www.chrismartenson.com/

John_Pierpoint

ses6jwg wrote: »

In terms of Santander as a whole, they are rated by Global Finance as the 10th Safest Bank in the world

http://www.gfmag.com/tools/best-banks/11341-worlds-50-safest-banks-2011.html#axzz1aVmMBDNL

Note that HSBC is ranked 16th.

According to the list:
The USA's "safest" bank is Mellon.
Well down the list in global terms BUT so flooded with deposits that never mind paying interest, it has had to impose charges for looking after the large deposits coming in.

Doc_N

The best reason not to bank with Santander isn't its financial position - it's the appalling customer service it provides, and its frequent mistakes. That, plus its riciculously low Faster Payments limits, and its frequent fouling up of Faster payments.

Why anybody would choose to bank with this shower escapes me completely when there are banks like First Direct around.

tonytsdiver

In the event of Santander collapsing what would happen to its mortgage accounts?

In particular would the Flexible Mortgage product currently charging 0.49% over base rate disappear? This could be a problem to borrowers and savers alike.

KTF

The mortgage would be sold on and you would continue paying the monthly payment to the company that bought it so no change at all.

oldvicar

Doc_N wrote: »

The best reason not to bank with Santander isn't its financial position - it's the appalling customer service it provides, and its frequent mistakes. That, plus its riciculously low Faster Payments limits, and its frequent fouling up of Faster payments.

Why anybody would choose to bank with this shower escapes me completely when there are banks like First Direct around.

Sould I worry about falling service standards when Santander buy my RBS accounts next year ?

[RBS are being forced to sell some as the EU's penalty for being bailed out ]