All articles by Douglas Blakey
Douglas Blakey
Switching rates inch up but only 2.4% switched in 2014; Santander, Nationwide the big winners
Take a bow Santander and Nationwide: the clear early winners of the UK Payment Councils seven day current account switching initiative.
Stars in their eyes: RBC City National will target UK growth
Less than a year after taking charge of Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) the banks new CEO Dave McKay has agreed the banks biggest ever deal, the $5.4bn acquisition of Los Angeles-headquartered City National.
Monitise puts itself on the block
Following sharp drops in its share price, Monitise is considering all options, including a possible sale.
Losses narrow, deposits & loans soar, challenges remain at Metro Bank
From a standing start in 2010, total assets at Metro Bank now exceed £3.6bn; for the year to end December, total assets almost doubled (up 94%) while customer numbers grew by 63% to 447,000 writes Douglas Blakey
SBI takes wraps off digital branch
SBI has thrown itself energetically into the digital age with the launch of a network of digital branches with the aim of appealing to the youth and mass affluent segment. The ambitious project incorporates a sub-brand and outlets in premier locations in key city shopping centres. Douglas Blakey reports
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Credit where credit is due: UK banks lead the way with basic accounts promo
It is rather agreeable to end the year on a positive note and flag up one area where the UK banks can deservedly claim to be leading the way: I talk of financial inclusion in general and basic accounts in particular
UK finally set to benefit from remote cheque deposit
And about time too: remote cheque capture reaches the UK. Consumers will be able to deposit cheques instantly using their mobile phone rather than visiting a branch. For the banks, there is the benefit of avoiding the expense of delivering cheques physically to a clearing facility, writes Douglas Blakey
Another record year for RBIs global retail bank of the year: RBC
Its another record year for Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) with profit increasing by 8% year-on-year to C$9bn. RBC met or exceeded all of its key financial performance objectives with a return on equity of 19%, while holding higher capital, and increased its dividend 12%. Douglas Blakey writes
Branch of The Future China Style
Another new branch concept, another Branch of the Future. Except this time the project is in China and The Bank of China branch project captured the public imagination to the extent that the launch was covered live on national TV. Douglas Blakey reports
So how long do you queue before becoming fed up?
Five minutes, 10 minute, how long is reasonable to stand in line, asks Douglas Blakey?