survey

banking

figure 3: Customer satisfaction ratings

Note: Banks with less than five charities rating their services have been excluded.

Relationship manager

Unity Trust AIB

Co-operative RBS

Barclays Lloyds TSB NatWest

Bank of Scotland HSBC

CAF Bank Overall

012345

very

very dissatisfied

Telephone services

Unity Trust

Co-operative CAF Bank AIB

NatWest RBS

Lloyds TSB

Bank of Scotland Barclays HSBC Overall

01234 5

very

very dissatisfied

Fees/charges

CAF Bank Unity Trust AIB

Bank of Scotland Co-operative RBS

Barclays Lloyds TSB NatWest HSBC Overall

01234 5

very

very dissatisfied

Availability of finance

Unity Trust AIB

CAF Bank RBS

NatWest

Co-operative HSBC

Lloyds TSB Barclays

Bank of Scotland Overall

01234 5

very

very dissatisfied

32

Charity Finance April 2010

satisfied satisfied satisfied

Interest rates

AIB

Unity Trust CAF Bank

Bank of Scotland Co-operative Barclays NatWest RBS HSBC

Lloyds TSB Overall

01234 5

very

very dissatisfied satisfied

“ We might save a small amount by changing bank but have to offset that against the convenience of staying put.”

“ Our bank was very supportive when we were on the verge of bankruptcy a few years ago. They helped pull us through and we want to repay them with loyalty.”

satisfied

Internet services

Unity Trust CAF Bank

Bank of Scotland NatWest AIB RBS

Barclays HSBC

Lloyds TSB

Co-operative Overall

01234 5

very

very dissatisfied satisfied

healthcare specialist function at Barclays and has been transformed as a result,” comments the director of corporate services at a charity with annual income of £35m. Certainly the high street

banks have exhibited sufficient specialisation to hold on to charities in the upper income bracket of £20m plus, where – based on survey data at least – Unity Trust, CAF Bank and Triodos have no primary banking relationships (see Figure 2). For banks which focus on the not-

for-profit sector, the banking crisis has provided an ideal opportunity to differentiate themselves against – and win business from – the mainstream banks. Unity Trust, for example, asks in its marketing literature: “Wouldn’t it be nice to be with a bank that had no exposure to sub-prime lending, no toxic debt, hadn’t needed government funds, hadn’t seen its share price plummet

www.civilsociety.co.uk

Branch services

AIB

Unity Trust CAF Bank

Co-operative NatWest HSBC

Lloyds TSB Barclays

Bank of Scotland RBS

Overall

01234 5

very

very dissatisfied satisfied

expanded by the acquisition of HBOS (including Bank of Scotland) by Lloyds TSB. Specialisation is clearly highly

valued by the charity sector with 76 per cent saying it is ‘very important’ or ‘fairly important’ and 24 per cent viewing it as ‘fairly unimportant’ or ‘not at all important’ (see Figure 4). It is equally clear, however, that specialisation is not the exclusive preserve of the specialists and that many of the high street banks have been able to organise themselves in such a way that they can provide expertise in charity finance and in specific market segments. “Our relationship is managed in the

“ I don’t think that most banks understand the structure and particular needs of charities, ie the role of trustees and the short term nature of much funding.” Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68