Media Centre
The Building Societies Association (BSA) announces today that it is to expand the work which it does on behalf of building societies by representing their interests in the mortgage and housing markets.
Building societies make a distinctive contribution to the UK’s financial services market. They are mutually owned without external shareholders. They account for over 20% of the deposit and residential mortgage markets. Independent research shows that building societies, compared to their competitors, offer lower mortgage rates, higher savings rates and higher standards of service. Building societies are keen to build upon this reputation and believe that their best interests can be served by BSA representing them in all of the major markets in which they operate.
In recent years the BSA has tended to concentrate on matters such as the savings market, corporate governance and Treating Customers Fairly, but has invested relatively little in mortgage market issues.
During the second half of 2008 the BSA will be recruiting up to seven additional members of staff to fill this gap in the range of services which it offers to its members. It is expected that those staff will play an important role from January 2009 in representing the interests of building societies to regulators such as the FSA, to parliamentarians and to the media, while at the same time helping building societies to understand more the impact of regulatory and economic developments on their own mortgage business.
Commenting on this important development for the BSA and building societies, John Goodfellow, Chairman of the BSA said:
“Recent events have accentuated the distinctiveness of building societies. We have attracted record inflows of new savings in recent months and operate a robust and long standing business model.
“This expansion of representation is a natural step for the BSA and will reinforce the standing of building societies in the financial sector. It will help to ensure that the differences between building societies and banks are more widely understood.
“This is an exciting time for building societies and the BSA and we look forward to fully representing the interests of the sector.”
~Ends~
Building societies make a distinctive contribution to the UK’s financial services market. They are mutually owned without external shareholders. They account for over 20% of the deposit and residential mortgage markets. Independent research shows that building societies, compared to their competitors, offer lower mortgage rates, higher savings rates and higher standards of service. Building societies are keen to build upon this reputation and believe that their best interests can be served by BSA representing them in all of the major markets in which they operate.
In recent years the BSA has tended to concentrate on matters such as the savings market, corporate governance and Treating Customers Fairly, but has invested relatively little in mortgage market issues.
During the second half of 2008 the BSA will be recruiting up to seven additional members of staff to fill this gap in the range of services which it offers to its members. It is expected that those staff will play an important role from January 2009 in representing the interests of building societies to regulators such as the FSA, to parliamentarians and to the media, while at the same time helping building societies to understand more the impact of regulatory and economic developments on their own mortgage business.
Commenting on this important development for the BSA and building societies, John Goodfellow, Chairman of the BSA said:
“Recent events have accentuated the distinctiveness of building societies. We have attracted record inflows of new savings in recent months and operate a robust and long standing business model.
“This expansion of representation is a natural step for the BSA and will reinforce the standing of building societies in the financial sector. It will help to ensure that the differences between building societies and banks are more widely understood.
“This is an exciting time for building societies and the BSA and we look forward to fully representing the interests of the sector.”
~Ends~
Notes
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The Building Societies Association (BSA) represents all 59 building societies in the United Kingdom. Building societies have total assets of over £360 billion and, together with their subsidiaries, hold residential mortgages of £250 billion, more than 20% of the total outstanding in the UK. Societies hold about £230 billion of retail deposits, accounting for more than 20% of all such deposits in the UK. Building societies also account for about 38% of all cash ISA balances. Building societies employ over 51,500 full and part-time staff and operate through more than 2,000 branches.
Photographs of John Goodfellow are available from the BSA press office, or from the Association’s website at www.bsa.org.uk
BSA will be offering the new mortgage service from January 1st 2009.
