IBS Journal April 2017
17
as we continue to expand our network, we look forward to utilising Ripple to enhance banks’ transactions across the world.”
Over 90 banks globally are working with the venture, in- Union blasts branch busting RBS
across the UK, on top of the 86 announced late last year, due to a “dramatic shift” in banking. That will leave 151 RBS and 856 NatWest branches. Some 925 staff will be affected, with 472 full-time jobs at risk. High Street transactions have fallen 43% since 2010, RBS claims, whilst online and mobile transactions have increased by more than 400%.
R
“We interact with our customers over 20 times more through digital channels than physical ones. As customers change the way they bank with us, we must change the way we serve them,” says a spokesperson for RBS, which remains majority-owned by the UK government following a multi-billion bailout almost a decade ago. “The role of the branch is fast moving to a centre for advice, away from basic transactions. While the branch will still be a core part of our offering to customers, inevitably some branches will have to close.”
The Unite union has slammed the move, accusing RBS of turning its back on the communities that have been the foundation of its business for generations. “Banks have a
duty to the wider community and that is especially the case for banks like RBS that have large taxpayer-owned shareholdings,” says Unite acting general secretary Gail Cartmail. “People like the face-to-face contact that having a physical presence in the High Street provides. Pen- sioners, people with mobility issues, and those without internet access are being particularly hard-hit – especially in rural areas. Small businesses are also badly affected – especially those that rely on cash-handing. It’s time for banking regulators and government to intervene, to force banks to maintain an adequate network that properly serves communities across the UK.”
Scott Thompson TSAM London tackles Brexit/robo-advice
Brexit, and there will be plenty of “screaming, shouting and toys being thrown out of the pram” along the way, accord-
A sset managers are in for a bumpy ride with
ing to a panel at TSAM London 2017, which took place in March.
BS and NatWest are to shed 158 branches
cluding Santander, Bank of America and Axis Bank, whilst 30-plus pilots have been completed and around 10 banks are moving into commercial use.
Scott Thompson
www.ibsintelligence.com
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
