IBS Journal May 2016
19
the first product line, a prepaid MasterCard, to customers of Belgian cooperative society, NewB. This was founded by 24 NGOs in 2011 and has generated more than 50,000 members, including civil society organisations via crowdfunding techniques. Rabobank is the custodian bank.
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The prepaid card, made of a renewable material called polylactic acid which comes from non-genetically engineered corn, will be available to customers as both a physical and virtual version, under the GOODPAY label. Dirk Coeckelbergh, Managing Director of NewB, says: “We chose to work with PFS because not only do they
repaid Financial Services (PFS) is to provide
have a heritage in delivering successful prepaid card programmes across Europe including working directly with other challenger banks, but also their management is extremely business minded, open for ethical evolutions and dares to go beyond traditional boundaries.”
Noel Moran, CEO of PFS, comments: “This is banking but not as we know it. There is a huge appetite for more responsible but less commercially-driven organisations in the financial sector which makes it a truly exciting time to be working with a NewB in Belgium and developing the market for prepaid cards.”
Scott Thompson TSB’s challenger status starts to pay off
acquired by Spain’s Banco de Sabadell after majority owner Lloyds accepted a £1.7 billion bid, has reported strong first quarter results. It has also called on the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to do more to break the big five banks’ stranglehold on the UK market.
T
7.1% of all customers opening a new account or switching banks chose TSB in Q1 2016. Customer lending grew to £22.4 billion, up 20 per cent year-on-year as more customers chose TSB as their mortgage provider. The bank began offering loans through brokers last year, the channel that accounts for about 70 per cent of mortgage sales in the UK. Customer deposits increased to £27 billion, up 8.4 per cent compared to the same period a year ago. Profits doubled on the previous quarter to £59.9 million, a rise of 75% on Q1 2015.
Paul Pester, TSB CEO, says: “As customers continue to vote with their feet and move their banking to TSB we’ve seen a record growth in our customer deposits, a record number of people choosing TSB for their mortgage, and more customers than ever before willing to recommend us to friends and family.”
SB, a UK challenger bank which last year was
He also stresses, however, that there is plenty to do in terms of bringing more competition to UK banking. “The extra firepower we now have behind us from Sabadell is helping us to take-on the big banks in new areas, such as through our new “Pick and Protect” home insurance product. So, whilst I think TSB is doing its bit to break the stranglehold the big five banks have on the UK market, we can’t do this alone. We need the CMA to use the once in a generation opportunity they have to help us bring the full force of competition to bear on the UK banking market. We want all bank customers to know what they’re paying for their banking; all customers – including overdraft users – to be able to switch easily; and all customers to be aware of their right to switch banks. Only then will competition really start to work and the culture of UK banks finally shift to serving customers on their terms – rather than on the banks’.”
Scott Thompson
www.ibsintelligence.com
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