Bradford and Bingley Collapse

WoodySenior

I paid into savings accounts for all three of my children and converted them to shares when they changed. When they went down can anyone tell me what happened to the assets as not a penny was paid back to the ordinary shareholders? This has irritated me for so long! I could never get an answer at the time from any source including the administrator but I will bet good money on it that his fees were all covered.

xylophone

https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/investing/article-1697946/Your-Bradford-Bingley-shares-are-worthless.html

http://www.bbactiongroup.org/News.htm

webjaved

That's just hard to take.

HappyHarry

Of course the administators got paid. They are far above the shareholders in the pecking order when a company goes into liquidation.



In fact, the shareholders (i.e. the owners of the business) are the very lowest priority, compared to the administrators, HMRC and any creditors of the business.

jimjames

WoodySenior wrote: »

I paid into savings accounts for all three of my children and converted them to shares when they changed. When they went down can anyone tell me what happened to the assets as not a penny was paid back to the ordinary shareholders? This has irritated me for so long! I could never get an answer at the time from any source including the administrator but I will bet good money on it that his fees were all covered.

Just to correct your post. They did not convert savings accounts to shares. Savers who qualified were given shares. Their savings were unaffected. If you decided to buy extra shares with their savings that was your choice not B&B so you can't blame anyone else for that choice.

If a company collapses then shareholders can lose out. That's the whole point of having your capital at risk.

dunstonh

This has irritated me for so long

Why?

Single company shares are high risk and failure means you can lose 100% of the amount invested in that share. This is why most people use funds rather than shares as it spreads is around. Ideally, no more than 1-2% of your money being in any one company.

When they went down can anyone tell me what happened to the assets as not a penny was paid back to the ordinary shareholders?

Liabilities were greater than the assets.

The B&B debt picked up by the FSCS was so large (15.65bn) that the FSCS had to borrow from the Govt. The remaining 4.68bn was repaid in 2018. This was raised from the sale of assets

AnotherJoe

WoodySenior wrote: »

I paid into savings accounts for all three of my children and converted them to shares when they changed. When they went down can anyone tell me what happened to the assets as not a penny was paid back to the ordinary shareholders? This has irritated me for so long! I could never get an answer at the time from any source including the administrator but I will bet good money on it that his fees were all covered.

Are you saying that you went and bought shares with the money in the kids accounts? If so, pay them back as it was you that screwed up not B&B or the administrator.
As for the administrator being paid first, rein in your misplaced indignation. If they weren't, imagine if you were the administrator or worked for them, would you do it for free, since you'd pretty much know up front there was no money to pay you? No i thought not.

[Deleted User]

I was a carpetbagger who opened a deposit account with Bradford and Bingley when it was a building society jn the hope of getting shares when it demutualised. I was lucky and was allocated, I think, 250 shares on demutualisation, possibly around 2000. In March 2007 my mother asked me to sell her similar holding in B and B shares to put towards a new car. I think she realised about £1200. I held onto my holding. Within a year or so, my shares were worthless. Obviously I have wished that I had sold my holding when my mother sold hers but I don't let it bother me. I was a carpetbagger and had received my shares for nothing, so I got my just desserts (ie nothing). That's life. There must be thousands of people who had the same experience.

AnotherJoe

Probably not that many who put their kids savings into them and then blamed the administrator though

talexuser

I was lucky and cashed in B&B freebies....

not so lucky with Northern Rock freebies, waited too long, went bust.... c'est la vie!

Aretnap

xylophone wrote: »

http://www.bbactiongroup.org/News.htm

For some reason that page made.me think of those Japanese soldiers in remote jungle hiding places, still fighting the Second World War in the 1970s.