What happens now with the Chelsea and Yorkshire building society merger?
Letters of explanation will be sent to Yorkshire and Chelsea building society members within the next 10 days explaining exactly what is on the table and what their voting options are. At least 75% of savers and 50% of borrowers must vote in favour of the deal for it to go ahead, at which point the transaction would be put to the Financial Services Authority (FSA) for clearance.
The merged operation will be the second largest mutual society in the UK with nearly 180 branches, assets of £35 billion and 2.7 million members. While there will be some branch closures, where Chelsea and Yorkshire branches overlap, it is believed there should be no more than a handful and there will be minimal job losses. To all intents and purposes this is an acquisition of the Chelsea building society by the Yorkshire building society, with Chelsea severely weakened by a recent mortgage fraud and a £44 million exposure to the Icelandic banking crisis.
For the first time in recent history the merged operation will pose a challenge to the Nationwide building society which has for many years ruled the roost in the UK building society sector. Consumers should be the major benefactors in the short, medium and longer term although to what extent is unknown at this moment in time.
Share this..
Related stories
Bank issues instability warning
Britain's financial system is becoming more and more "vulnerable" because of major bodies increasing their risk-taking, the Bank of England has warned.Publishing its financial stability report today, the Bank suggests that an "abrupt change" to market conditions could trigger serious consequences because of the heightened dangers.The growing use of credit risk transfer markets, leveraged corporate...
Read MoreE.ON cuts bills for electricity customers
Energy supplier E.ON has reduced some of its customer bills, after the results of an industry-wide investigation were released.Ofgem said in October that 4.3 million householders who were not connected to mains gas and did not use a "dual fuel" service from their provider could be overcharged by as much as £55 a year.This is due to them not having access to discounts offered to "dual fuel" custom...
Read MoreWho will be next after Cadbury?
While it is not yet certain that Cadbury will be taken-over, either by Kraft Foods or another party, the odds on the company staying independent are lengthening by the day. Nestlé would appear to have given up hope of a potential bid for the company and other potential partners are falling by the wayside. This potentially leaves Kraft Foods with a clear road if it is willing to increase its ini...
Read MoreWill the online shopping trend continue as the recession ends?
Since the beginning of UK recession we have seen a significant number of people move online for the best bargains and the best offers available. This has very much been to the detriment of the UK high street where we have seen the likes of Woolworths and other well-known companies go to the wall. While initially there had been hopes that the online shopping trend would reduce as and when the UK re...
Read MoreScottish Labour Candidate In Favour Of Abolishing Council Tax
While news that Scottish Labour leader candidate Iain Gray has suggested that council tax would be phased out if he was to take the helm of the Scottish Labour party may have been greeted by the SNP, it may actually highlight flaws in their controversial policy of a local income tax.
Far from condoning the SNP policy - which has been hit by claims of council funding gaps and other p...