Is it time to switch from Co-op Bank

ColdIron

You need to identify what you want from a bank and see which one best fits your requirements, if safety is your concern they are no more or less safe than any organisation covered by the FSCS

If you are attracted by their so called 'ethical' stance that ship has already sunk

If you want good products, ease of operation etc, the Co-op are pretty close to the bottom of the pile in this respect

I can't think of (m)any reasons to stick with them but as I say, figure out what is important to you and see if the Co-op provides it

Anthorn

Archi_Bald wrote: »

Seems there still are people who are extremely uncomfortable with the idea of further revelations. So even more reason for the inquiry to take its course.

Yes, I personally support an inquiry. It would be good to know what went on particularly since it's ridiculous to put the blame squarely at the door of just one person (Rev. Flowers). But as far as I know no crime was committed and the rescue package is approved by the bond-holders and in a court of law. So there is nothing that can be done except look at it in hindsight: It could be a case of lessons learned which can be avoided in the future but I doubt that very much.

1jim

I hope the enquiry looks into the acquisition of Britannia building society as part of their terms of reference, it would seem that there may have been more bad debt than they knew about, it would be good to know once and for all if that was a failure of due diligence on the banks part, or if it was concealed or if there was undue pressure from external sources.

I don't think I would go as far as to say the coop bank has a very solid foundation. The only thing that can be said is that's it's somewhat more stable now the investment has been agreed, but some customers are far from happy and may still leave the bank yet, I wonder how many customers would need to move their money for the bank not to be on very solid foundations...

ColdIron

1jim wrote: »

I hope the enquiry looks into the acquisition of Britannia building society as part of their terms of reference, it would seem that there may have been more bad debt than they knew about, it would be good to know once and for all if that was a failure of due diligence on the banks part, or if it was concealed or if there was undue pressure from external sources.

When speaking at the Treasury Select Committee Paul Flowers, who was not Chairman at the time the Britannia merger occurred in 2009, said that it and other deals were undertaken under pressure from senior government ministers. Ed Balls anyone?

1jim

It would be nice to see what pressure was applied, what sweeteners were offered, what consequences were promised and what government actually knew about the level of bad debt. Then if coop knew, it would also be nice to know why they bought into the deal knowing the risks rather than represent their customers a little more


But to be fair, if there's going to be an enquiry into coop bank, there should also be one into each of the banks that needed state bail outs. A proper root cause analysis if you will

Wilkins

mikeybase wrote: »

I've been a customer with them for years and they've been fine so far (though their internet banking interface is hideous). Just wondered what anyone else thought.

Everyone will make up their own mind on this. The downfall of the Co-op bank, as an "ethical" or even viable bank, is a dismal story of greedy and incompetent management which in my opinion started long before the acquisition of the Britannia. But, it can be paralleled by the stories of many other banks, though perhaps not quite so hypocritically.

However, I don't intend to move yet because, for me, the customer service has always been good and their online banking, though clunky, has never failed.

kkgree1

We've had nothing but excellent customer service from Co-op bank. All their call centres are in the UK and most of their staff are extremely helpful.

We've been with them 3 years as we opened a current account to obtain a mortgage (Britannia lifetime tracker which was top rate at the time). Although their internet banking seems archaic compared to their competitors (we have savings with most of the other banks) it does the job, albeit fairly basically.

We didn't join them because of their ethical stance but to obtain the best mortgage product for our needs. Although we cannot move our current account (without changing our mortgage) we don't feel unnerved by the latest financial crisis.

I don't believe any of the banks have their customer's best interests at heart as they exist purely to make money. I personally believe there are far worse banks such as RBS and Northern Rock.

System

They got Britannia for zilch - I would imagine getting the 3rd biggest Building Society for nothing was a very attractive proposition.

1jim wrote: »

It would be nice to see what pressure was applied, what sweeteners were offered, what consequences were promised and what government actually knew about the level of bad debt.

1jim

Heng_Leng wrote: »

They got Britannia for zilch - I would imagine getting the 3rd biggest Building Society for nothing was a very attractive proposition.

But it cost them a lot more than zilch in the long run! Due diligence should have been to explore if getting the Britannia for free was worth it. Most of us know there's nothing for free in the long run :eek: