Metro Bank - In difficulty?

boingy

GeoffTF said:

It seems that Shawbrook Bank has recently offered to buy Metro Bank:

https://news.sky.com/story/metro-bank-rejected-secret-shawbrook-takeover-approaches-12978882

They should try again. The price has gone down...

pridehappy

I've always been interested in Metro Bank as someone up north (the nearest branch to me is a 200-mile drive if another hasn't opened since I last looked) as it seems to be the only bank still dedicated to its branch business model (other than Nationwide, which is a different concept altogether). Their Sunday opening hours and drive-thru banks definitely are pioneering in the UK but they may have arrived just a little too late for the switch to digital banking.

If it was done right, I think Metro Bank could have been a good early competitor to digital banks like Starling, Monzo or Revoult. If they kept their products competitive, continued to pioneer in the digital world and continued to operate as a full-service bank instead of just current/savings accounts, they might have been successful. It would be further implied if they had a 24/7 telephone banking service and branches only in major cities, putting it in a position that the other digital banks would struggle to beat. I'm no expert - but I think it would work considering the current banking industry in the UK.

soolin

I would be sorry to see them go, I use them for mainly online sales and save the money and use it on holidays using their Euro fee free cards. 

However a lot of their staff worry me , their knowledge of banking rules is fleeting to say the least and I have already had a substantial pay out from them for a mismanaged chargeback. I’ve also, in just the past year, had them refuse to accept a cheque made out to me as (for instance) A Soolin  as the account is joint and shows A and AB Soolin and they insisted only a cheque made out to both of us could be deposited. I’ve also had them refuse Premium bond cheques, on the first instance as they didn’t know what it was, and on a second occasion because they said Premium bond cheques can only be cashed, not deposited. 

wmb194

Apparently JP Morgan via Chase UK considered bidding. It's interesting to learn that Chase UK could be open to expanding its offering.

"(Reuters) - JPMorgan Chase considered a potential bid for Metro Bank before opting not to proceed because of the extra capital a new buyer would have to put in, the Financial Times reported on Sunday.

A deal would have been done through JPMorgan’s British digital banking unit, Chase UK, the FT added."

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/money/other/jpmorgan-chase-opted-out-of-bid-for-metro-bank-ft/ar-AA1hShpu

wmb194

It's beginning to sound a little desperate:

"The adviser [EY aka Ernst & Young] has approached several lenders with the aim of agreeing a deal before the markets open on Monday, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing private matters. JPMorgan Chase & Co. was among the lenders approached but has decided not to proceed, one of the people said."

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-10-08/ey-approaches-lenders-in-push-to-find-metro-bank-buyer-by-monday?leadSource=uverify%20wall

born_again

Miser1964 said:

Run, don't walk, to get your money out!

Which is how the las crash happened. With comments like that.
If people had done nothing, they would still have had their money & we would just have carried on as before without billions of pounds having to be spent to bail them out. 

eskbanker

born_again said:

Miser1964 said:

Run, don't walk, to get your money out!

Which is how the las crash happened. With comments like that.
If people had done nothing, they would still have had their money & we would just have carried on as before without billions of pounds having to be spent to bail them out. 

That's quite a stretch - there was obviously a run on Northern Rock, to which irresponsible scaremongering will have contributed, but its problems related to unwise lending, and the wider global crisis encompassed both that risky activity (especially in the USA) and many other factors, so runs on banks were symptoms not causes as such....

gsmh

soolin said:

However a lot of their staff worry me , their knowledge of banking rules is fleeting to say the least.

Yes, I used to bank with them, but on occasions when I needed to call them it was clear they didn't really understand banking norms and I found myself explaining things to them. Rather worrying.

wmb194

Seems EY is working for the Bank of England's PRA. The Guardian reports NatWest and the other big boys have been sounded out as a purchasers so I guess it's willing to waive any competition concerns.

"NatWest was also asked to look at buying the total business, and may yet consider a sale of Metro’s mortgage book, as previously reported. HSBC, Lloyds and Santander UK were also reported to be among the banks approached as potential Metro buyers.

Metro is still operating within the regulator’s capital limits but is doing so within a “buffer”, meaning it will need to raise more cash from investors to grow the business in any meaningful way."

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/oct/08/bank-of-england-sounds-out-buyers-for-metro-bank-including-natwest

dcs34

Metro always struck me as a slightly confused offering, on paper everything about them would look to be catering for the non-digital (older) traditional banking demographic who want branches and real people, and are content to forgo the top rates or modern innovations to have that.

Yet in all their marketing they seemed to be aiming at city-centre young professionals and new families, most of whom will have gone straight from whatever children's bank account was opened for them to a modern digital or app-based challenger bank to suit a more flexible, on-the-go lifestyle.