UK Banks

Ever since the 2008 recession took place, the list of UK banks has diminished. With the nationalizing of Northern Rock by the UK government and the acquisition of Bradford and Bingley by Lloyds bank, the UK banking sector has become even more concentrated. This is nothing new, since UK banks have been known for their consolidation since the early 20^th century, when the UK banking scene did not have many independent players.[br]

Ever since the 2008 recession took place, the list of UK banks has diminished. With the nationalizing of Northern Rock by the UK government and the acquisition of Bradford and Bingley by Lloyds bank, the UK banking sector has become even more concentrated. This is nothing new, since UK banks have been known for their consolidation since the early 20^th century, when the UK banking scene did not have many independent players.[br]

Top Six UK Banks

According to market capitalization (as of May, 2009), the following are the top six UK banks:

·        HSBC bank

·        Barclays bank

·        Standard Chartered

·        Royal Bank of Scotland Group

·        Lloyds Banking Group

·        Co-Operative bank

As expected in a consolidated segment, the UK government owns a claiming stake of 70% of the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and 43% stake of Lloyds Banking Group. However, the functioning of both these banks remains independent of the government.

Another kind of financial service organization is the building societies. Building societies are financial institutions owned by members and offer facilities such as mortgage. Although the significance and the role of building societies decreased after the 1980s due to demutualization, they still exist in the UK. A few of them, such as Halifax and Abbey, have been acquired by Lloyds and Santander, respectively. Other building societies have been acquired or nationalized by the government. A few of these building societies are:

·        Nationwide

·        Yorkshire

·        Coventry

·        Chelsea

·        Skipton

·        West Bromwich

·        Leeds

·        Principality

·        Newcastle

·        Nottingham

·        Progressive

·        Cumberland[br]

Banks controlled by HM Government: UK Banks

The ‘His/ Her Majesty’ or HM government controls the National Savings and Investments (NS&I). This bank was founded in 1861 to raise additional finances, besides taxation, at lower interest rates and help the government avoid borrowing directly from the market.

Northern Rock is another UK bank that was nationalized in February 2008, after it was faced with bankruptcy after more than a century. Bradford and Bingley has also been partially nationalized and its branch network has been acquired by Abbey.

Besides the government controlled banks, the UK, being a country open to foreign investments, also has banks that are controlled by foreign countries, such as the Bank of Ireland, Northern Bank or the Yorkshire Bank.