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
Alistair Darling calls for multilateral reform of the financial sector
Alistair Darling has been speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos today during which he urged countries around the world to pull together and reduce the influence of the financial sector as a whole. However, unlike some government around the world he has reiterated the UK stance which is against the breaking up of banks into separate entities such as investment banking and traditional bankin...
Read MoreMervyn King backs radical changes in UK banking sector
Mervyn King, the Gov of the Bank of England, has today come out in support of Pres Obama's drastic move to control and restrict the power and growth in the worldwide banking sector. He believes that the UK needs a "safer and more robust banking system" and believes Pres Obama's move will prompt a wider debate about the pros and cons of the worldwide financial sector. If we take a step back to w...
Read MoreWhy comparing bank accounts can save you money
The vast majority of people in the UK are unlikely to have changed their bank account over the last decade even though the process has never been easier. There are hundreds of thousands of sites on the Internet which offer access to the best rates and the best returns available and indeed in many cases the companies involved will "do the paperwork for you". So why are UK consumers and UK businesse...
Read MoreCompetition for Northern Rock takeover
Northern Rock is set to become the focus of takeover speculation over the coming weeks with news that National Australia Bank and Virgin Money appear set to fight it out for the chance to acquire the controversial UK bank. It is no secret that Northern Rock is currently being split in two by the UK government, into a good bank and a bad bank, and the good bank will be sold off to the highest bidde...
Read MoreBank accounts number one target for fraudsters
02/07/2015 Bank accounts have beaten mortgages to become the number one target for financial fraud in the UK, according to Experian. In the first three months of 2015, 0.89% of all current account applications came from fraudsters. This is compared to 0.83% of mortgages applied for. The rise is due to an increase in identity fraud over the past year. This is when a fraudster would use som...
Read More