Calls for investigation into Scottish banking sector
A number of MSP's have today stepped forward to demand an investigation by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) into the Scottish banking arena and an apparent lack of competition. The move has been championed by a number of business associations up and down the UK and when you bear in mind the near collapse of Royal Bank of Scotland and HBOS (part of the Lloyds bank group) it is perhaps easy to see why there is increasing concern North of the border.
For many years Scotland had a very strong financial sector although companies such as Royal Bank of Scotland and HBOS (which includes the original Bank of Scotland operation) expanded heavily during the recent past and are now paying the price. Without the assistance of the UK authorities we could have seen the collapse of Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds bank which would have decimated the Scottish financial sector and made the situation even worse.
The Scottish parliament is suggesting that the OFT should look into personal accounts, mortgages and business banking in Scotland. There is growing concern that Scottish businesses are struggling more than any other in the UK from a lack of liquidity and a lack of assistance from the Scottish banking community. It will be interesting to see whether the Office of Fair Trading takes notice of this request and whether it finds any evidence of frailties in the Scottish financial sector.
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