Should I switch to the Coop bank?

franby64

Morning

I'm a Lloyds customer but I'm dismayed at their proposal to get rid of £9,000 jobs and close @200 branches.
I understand that they want to 'digitise' and that more people now do their banking online (I do) but I think that wealthy organisations, like banks, should be trying harder to provide jobs.

Anyway, this has got me thinking again about changing to the Coop. I would really like to change to them but am not convinced that they are as ethical as they were or are in as good financial shape due to their recent troubles. And I guess they've done a fair bit of job cutting recently!

Would people recommend the Coop? Or are there better ethical banks? I realise I'm looking for the type of bank that probably doesn't exist!

eskbanker

What does 'ethical' actually mean to you? For some it relates to not dealing with, say, arms trade, whereas if you're looking for a bank that won't lay people off (if deemed necessary) then I suspect you could be in for a long search....

colsten

Strange thing to consider. If all Lloyds customers reacted like you, Lloyds would have to lay off a lot more than 9,000 people and close a lot more than 200 branches (or the 150 that they announced they will close). Is that what you want?

franby64

Yes, I realised as I was writing the post that I would probably never get what I was looking for hence the last line.

Ethical to me does mean not investing in the arms trade etc.

Jobs is a difficult one as it may well be that mass employment in banking has had it's day. But banks are still wealthy so I suppose I'm looking for a bank with a good lending policy to create jobs somewhere if not actually in the bank! So many very wealthy organisations are shedding jobs to create even more profit - this is what has annoyed me!

So perhaps we should just limit it to whether people would recommend the Coop as I think this may be the best of a bad lot!

System

Building societies are quite high in the ethical scale.

Nationwide, Cumberland, N&P and Coventry all offer current accounts.
Metrobank appears highly rated too

colsten

franby64 wrote: »

So many very wealthy organisations are shedding jobs to create even more profit - this is what has annoyed me!

I notice you aren't complaining about the tax the wealthy companies are paying. The UK financial sector accounts for some 16% of the total HMRC revenue.http://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/business/economic-research-and-information/research-publications/Documents/research-2013/total-tax-contribution-of-uk-financial-services-sixth-edition.pdf

The wealthy (and not so wealthy) companies also contribute to NI and pensions. And their overall objective is to generate values for their shareholders. If you are of the view that they generate too much profit, why not just become a shareholder?

franby64 wrote: »

I suppose I'm looking for a bank with a good lending policy to create jobs somewhere if not actually in the bank

It is not the job of banks to create jobs somewhere. In fact, the very thought of banks being responsible for creating jobs outside their own organisation fills me with dread.

bubblesbonbon

I've been with the Co-op Bank for many years and I have never had a problem that wasn't sorted efficiently and politely.

Granted that their Internet banking hasn't all the bells and whistles that other banks have but it serves it's purpose.

They do not have an interest paying current account but they do have a cash back style credit card.

I also like the idea of using the Post Office to withdraw money (I think other banks may have this facility now)

Switch now and you can get £100 plus £25 to charity - there is a separate thread on this board covering this.

Their ethical policy was not an issue for me but they do seem very proud of it.

SnowTiger

franby64 wrote: »

I'm a Lloyds customer but I'm dismayed at their proposal to get rid of £9,000 jobs and close @200 branches.
I understand that they want to 'digitise' and that more people now do their banking online (I do) but I think that wealthy organisations, like banks, should be trying harder to provide jobs.

Anyway, this has got me thinking again about changing to the Coop.

Even after the job losses and closure of branches, Lloyds Bank will still have more branches and employ more staff than The Co-operative Bank.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Co-operative_Bank:

The [Co-operative] bank said it had cut staff numbers by 21 percent – or about 1,560 workers – in the past year as it looks to slash costs and [the bank's chief executive Niall] Booker said there were more job losses to come. The bank also closed 46 branches, reducing its branch network by 16 percent since the start of 2014. Another 25 will close in the remainder of the year, it said.

What makes you think The Co-operative Bank is "trying harder to provide jobs" than Lloyds Bank?

ColdIron

franby64 wrote: »

So many very wealthy organisations are shedding jobs to create even more profit - this is what has annoyed me!

If I was a shareholder in Lloyds I would be annoyed if their eyes were not focused on making a profit. With the advent of the internet and increased automation these sorts of moves are inevitable. Lloyds are late out of the blocks and just playing catchup with Barclays etc. Don't forget they are part owned by the taxpayer and we want them off the books as soon as is reasonably practical

I'm not sure how ethical the Co-op really are, despite the current 5.3 million advert campaign. I went into a Co-op a few months ago and it was like going back to the 1950's and I don't mean that in a good way

franby64

Thank you for your replies.

Colsten : You will never convince me that banks and wealthy companies pay enough tax! They should be using their profits to invest in jobs, not feathering their nests.

bubblesbonbon : Thank you. I'd noticed the £100 changing bonus! I will probably go for this.

SnowTiger : I don't know if the Coop is trying harder than Lloyds to provide jobs. But it's what I would want my bank to do rather than just cream off profits to enrich their senior staff (and very definitely not their junior staff).

ColdIron : My concern is what they do with their profits. And they don't need to be flash, just efficient!

colsten

franby64, you seem to be living in some sort of a socialist phantasy land that couldn't possibly function properly, nor be a country that you would actually want to live in when you really think it through.

Do you actually think overtaxing companies (and people, presumably) would incentivise anyone in any way? And who precisely do you think does pay for taxes to start with? Do you think companies all have some sort of a money growing tree, or do you think the money they make comes from their customers?