Lloyds TSB www.lloydstsb.co.uk
National Westminster Bank (NatWest) www.natwest.co.uk
Nationwide Building Society www.nationwide.co.uk
Northern Bank www.nbonline.co.uk
Portman www.portman.co.uk
Royal Bank of Scotland www.rbs.co.uk
Standard Chartered Bank www.standardchartered.co.uk
Standard Life Bank www.standardlifebank.co.uk
Woolwich Building Society www.woolwich.co.uk
Yorkshire Building Society www.ybs.co.uk
Merchant banks
Merchant banks: they mostly deal in international finance, long-term loans for companies and underwriting. Their main aim is to focus on specialising for businesses. They handle and are accounted for the global finance, lasting loans, to firms and financing. Merchant banks do not provide regular banking services to the general public. Merchant banks would invest money into any new suitable business that might be considered too high a risk but they will charge them higher interest then high street banks. This is another way of merchant banks making money. Their main aim is to help the national economy by launching new companies and putting them on stock exchange, but if a company don’t have enough investment to be on a stock exchange market then they provide them loan advices so they can get that loan to invest in their company so that company can go onto he stock exchange market. They help businesses to grow by helping the growth of national business will help to increase the growth of the economy and its wealth the country.
Examples:
Barings Bank
Berenberg Bank
N. M. Rothschild & Sons
George Peabody & Co.
Kleinwort Benson
Guinness Mahon
Schroders
J. S. Morgan & Co.
Hope & Co.
Defoe Fournier & Cie.
Close Brothers
Morgan Grenfell & Co.
Greenhill & Co.
Robert Fleming & Co.
Kuhn, Loeb & Co.
Hambros Bank
Hill Samuel
Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.
Samuel Montagu & Co.
H. J. Merck & Co.
Building societies
Building societies are similar to the high street banks but their role is different from them. Because they provide different type of services such as mortgages. Building societies began in UK in 19th century and they are similar to saving and loans institutions in United States. Building societies are known as mutual societies and they are owned by their investors. All the profits they make they have to share it with their customers they can share this by giving interest rate on some amount of money they have into their accounts for example 1% on £1000. Building societies their main aim is not to make profit for their shareholders whom can allow them to offer interest they want to their investors and borrowers but that interest rate cannot have much difference from their other competitors. Their main aim is not to make money but it don’t allows them to offer any interest they want it has to be more then national bank is charging it cannot go lower than that.
Examples:
Barnsley Building Society (A trading name of Yorkshire Building Society)
Permanent Building, Regent Street, Barnsley, South Yorkshire, S70 2EH
Bath Building Society
15 Queen Square, Bath, Avon, BA1 2HN
Beverley Building Society
Britannia (Part of the Co-operative Financial Services)
Britannia House, Cheadle Road, Leek, Staffordshire, ST13 5RA
Buckinghamshire Building Society
High Street, Chalfont St Giles, Buckinghamshire, HP8 4QB
Cambridge Building Society
Century Building Society
Chelsea Building Society (A trading name of Yorkshire Building Society)
Cheshire Building Society (A trading division of Nationwide Building Society)
Chorley & District Building Society, The
City of Derry Building Society
Coventry Building Society
Cumberland Building Society
Darlington Building Society
Derbyshire Building Society (A trading division of Nationwide Building Society)
Dudley Building Society
Dunfermline Building Society (A trading division of Nationwide Building Society)
The Bank of England
Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom. This acts as a banker to the government and the commercial banks this can be called as national bank of United Kingdom. It is their responsibility for managing the government's debt and applying its policy on other financial matters: established in 1694, nationalized in 1946; in 1997 the government restored the authority to set interest rates to the Bank. The Bank of England used to known as “Old Lady of Thread Needle Street”. Bank of England has the control to sets their own interest rates because in 1997 the bank was given operational independence which means they can set their own interest rate without any interference from the government, but other banks cannot go lower than their rate they have to keep their rate higher then bank of England. Interest rates are set by the monetary policy committee.
European central banks
The main aim of European central bank is to make decision on economics policies for those countries participating in the financial union. The European central bank is responsible for the financial system of the European Union and the euro currency. The bank was started in Germany in June 1998 and works with the other national banks of each of the EU members to invent economic policy that helps maintain price strength in the European Union. The European central bank is part of the European system of central banks (ESCB). The central bank of England BoE is part of the ESCB, but UK has not joined the euro but still it will take part in some of the ESCB’s activities.
The London Stock Exchange
The main stock exchange of the United Kingdom is about selling and buying stocks, bonds, shares and other financial instruments on daily basis. One of the oldest and largest exchanges in the world, its traces its origins back to 1773. The London Stock Exchange utilizes telecommunication and electronic resources to accept and execute trades. In 2000 the stock exchange transferred its role as UK listing authority with HM treasury to the financial services agency and shareholders voted for London stock exchange and helped it to become a public limited company. To be able to sell your company’s shares on the stock exchange or to be on the stock exchange market your company needs to meet the requirements which are: 1. minimum capitalisation of £700,000, 2. at least 25% of shares from your company must be offered for sale to the public which means any person from public can buy the shares of your company and they once they have bought the shares they will have 25% control on the business or more if they have bought more shares. 3. Five years or more full trading accounts must be published.
