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Quinn
Saving Enthusiast
Joined: 06 Feb 2005
Posts: 181
Cash Points ££ 2817.02
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 Posted: Sun Oct 15, 2006 2:48 am Post subject: More BS merger windfalls in the pipeline |
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A WAVE of building society mergers has begun which will generate windfalls of £400 or more for savers, a leading investors' group has forecast.Newcastle Building Society last week offered £400 each to savers with local rival Universal Building Society, double its original offer, to create a Tyneside champion in the sector.The premium paid in building society mergers has crept up from £50 per account in 2003 when Clay Cross BS was acquired by the Derbyshire BS.
Tim Askew of the Investors Association, a group which campaigns for personal investors, said: "Building societies have always had value, but there have not been many mergers for a decade. Building societies did not want to give the impression that change was afoot. But a few deals have built up in the pipeline now."
And Askew predicted further mergers would follow. "It is remarkable that Universal has doubled the minimum windfall, perhaps in order to fend off other potential building society counter-bids," he said. "This seems to set a new benchmark for merger windfalls between building society partners arising from competition between the larger building societies who want to take over their medium-sized brethren."
Askew said one of the most likely candidates for takeover was the Scottish BS, based in Edinburgh, which recently came last in an Investors Association study of savings performance.He said: "The Dunfermline Building Society should take out the Scottish and deliver better value for savers."
Other recent deals in the sector include the takeover by Portman BS, the UK's third largest, of Lambeth BS following a bidding war with two rivals, and Leeds BS's acquisition of Mercantile BS. All these societies, along with the Newcastle, will remain as mutuals, unlike firms such as Halifax and Northern Rock, which became quoted companies in the 1990s.
Colin Seccombe, Newcastle BS's chief executive, said there were clear advantages in creating a bigger society. "Small and medium-sized building societies play an extremely important role in financial services and can therefore operate with healthy profits, but there is no doubt they are competing in a challenging market," he said. "Members of both societies can, in our view, only benefit from this merger." |
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Sugarbabe
Beginning Saver
Joined: 19 Jun 2006
Posts: 49
Cash Points ££ 1027.04
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| Posted: Tue Oct 17, 2006 8:21 pm Post subject: |
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What about others like Kent Reliance ?
Any chance they will float ? |
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