Will we see more mergers in the financial sector?
While the financial sector has been the main recipient of various mergers and takeovers during the last few months there is a feeling that we may well see further mergers and acquisitions in 2009. Many people believe that 2008 saw the top of the mergers and acquisitions market as a means of ensuring the smooth running of the financial markets at a time when liquidity and capital assets were under immense pressure.
In reality deals such as the Lloyds TSB and HBOS merger were forced upon the sector as was the change in ownership of Northern Rock and Bradford & Bingley. If as suspected we see credit crunch part two in 2009 there is every chance we will see mergers of a similar size and larger not only in the financial sector but many other areas of UK commerce. There are potentially enormous cost savings to be made by merging two similar businesses not to mention the accumulation of the various asset bases to produce a sounder foundation for the future.
A number of UK businesses will also come under severe pressure from their bankers to merge with competitors and those in similar industries as a means of cutting costs to the bone.
Share this..
Related stories
Is the EU about to pounce on UK regulators?
As Gordon Brown and Alistair Darling continue to discuss the options with regards to the UK regulatory system it has been claimed that EU ministers are looking to take control of London. This has caused great concern in the investment markets where EU meddling in the past has been anything but helpful. So will the UK authorities sit back and let the EU takeover?
The problem for the...
Mortgage recovery floundering
Building societies, banks and other financial institutes have reported that it is not expected to see any significant recovery in the mortgage market next year. A new screening or vetting process may solidify the current restricted lending that is already in place, industry professionals have opined. This is somewhat corroborated by the fact that mortgage lending last month stood at £12.4 bn w...
Read MoreHousing repossessions reach 14 year high
The Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML) has today confirmed that 46,000 homes were repossessed in the UK in 2009 which is the highest for over 14 years. While the number is an increase of 6,000 on the 2008 figure it is less than the CML forecast of 48,000 and it would appear the situation is improving. So what can we expect for 2010? To give you some background on the repossession figures, the CM...
Read MoreFSA refuses call for Icelandic investment inquiry
The FSA (Financial Services Authority) has refused to sanction an enquiry into Treasury management advisors who were heavily involved in the investment of up to £1 billion in Icelandic banks. There is a feeling that these "unregulated" advisers should be called to account for their part in the disastrous investment which has cost the UK government and the UK taxpayer hundreds of millions of poun...
Read MoreHouse prices rise as demand increases
14/05/2015 A report from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) has shown that a further drop in the number of people selling their homes has pushed house prices even higher. The report shows that the number of people selling their homes has fallen, whereas the amount of people looking to buy a new house has remained the same, leading to a rise in house prices. The number of...
Read More