Has Richard Branson scaled back his expansion plans?
The news that Virgin Money has acquired Church House Trust, one of the U.K.'s smaller regional banks, took many in the market by surprise with speculation that he was looking towards the Northern Rock. However, has a Richard Branson really scaled back his expansion plans?
Purely and simply the acquisition of Church House Trust gives Virgin Money access to a UK banking licence and the ability to expand what is a small operation. Rather than acquiring Northern Rock, which has problems and issues going back many years, the acquisition of Church House Trust will give Richard Branson something of a clean slate to start with. An outlay of just over £12 million also leaves a large pot for future expansion and future growth of the operation.
Even though many in the City are surprised at this move there is no doubt that Richard Branson has a mind of his own and often "thinks outside the box" which is why he has been so successful in the past. Whether he can actually shake up the UK banking arena and inject more competition in the medium to longer term remains to be seen but those who write off the serial entrepreneur do so at their own risk.
Share this..
Related stories
Are UK savers being ignored again?
Despite suggestions from the UK government, with no guarantees, that savers would be "looked after" in the forthcoming budget this subject appears to have gone very quiet over the last few weeks. There are now concerns, again, that the UK government is pushing the problem of UK savers further and further down the list of things to do. So what exactly can and should savers expect in the short to me...
Read MoreUK pension funds hit by dividend downturn
As we covered in one of our earlier articles, the average UK company dividend fell by 15% during 2009 compared to 2008. Even though dividend payments still totalled £57 billion in 2009 the £10 billion shortfall compared to 2008 has and continues to hit pension funds hardest. These are investment vehicles which offer some tax advantages as well as long-term investment strategies which tend to dep...
Read MoreG20 meeting set to attract significant demonstrations
The forthcoming G20 meeting in London is set to attract significant interest from demonstrators around the world. It has been revealed that police forces in the UK have made the government becoming aware of significant activity within anarchist and anti-capitalist groups which could result in substantial demonstrations and possibly violence at the forthcoming G20 meeting.
This is no...
Is Alistair Darling hiding further public sector cuts?
The Institute for Fiscal Studies has identified a potential black-hole in Alistair Darling's financial plans from 2011 onwards. While he has identified there is a need for up to £36 billion of savings from the public sector budget from 2011 onwards, £15 billion of these potential cuts have yet to be identified and will no doubt take in a number of "frontline" services which are supposed to be pr...
Read MoreUK government under pressure regarding MG Rover
Despite Peter Mandelson's attempts to "kick the MG Rover saga into the long grass", by refusing to publish a report into the collapse of the company, the SFO (Serious Fraud Office) has today confirmed that no prosecutions will follow a report and the government is now free to release the information into the public domain.
There are various rumours and suggestions in the marketplac...