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Archive for: April, 2009

Paul Penrose - Finextra - London | 30/04/2009 | 6125 views | 2 comments

Twitter and other banking fads

LloydsTSB's James Gardner has caused a bit of a stir with some provocative comments on his BankerVision blog about the value of Twitter to banks. The Twitterati don't take kindly to criticism (constructive or otherwise), as I discovered personally a few months back when I made the mild observation - in an otherwise flattering take on Twitter - that... Tags: Online banking, Retail bankingGroup: Finance 2.0

Paul Penrose - Finextra - London | 22/04/2009 | 12070 views

Smoke, mirrors and financial accounting

How did the basket-cases of the US banking industry manage to post such, relatively, healthy results? It's all done by sleight of hand, as Dealbook helpfully explains. I particularly liked Goldman Sachs' stunt of simply eliminating a bad month from its quarterly report. That's financial genius at work. Are US banking executives so schooled in th... Tags: Wholesale bankingGroup: Finextra50 fintech index

Paul Penrose - Finextra - London | 17/04/2009 | 6993 views

No more 'free smiles' as JPMorgan brings back boring banking

Conventional wisdom has it that bank branches should take their cue from modern retail practices. They should be bright and welcoming, preferably open plan with comfy seating and staffed by approachable, friendly sales people. So why is JPMorgan taking a bulldozer to the WaMu Occasio branch concept, a $1 billion branch remodelling exercise that fr... Tags: Retail bankingGroup: Trends in Financial Services

Paul Penrose - Finextra - London | 08/04/2009 | 7072 views

The pound in your pocket may be worth less than you think

The number of fake pound coins in circulation may be twice Royal Mint estimates, says the BBC. Official figures suggest around 2.5% - or one in 40 - are copies, but coin testing companies say it is one in 20. This would put the number of bogus coins in circulation at 73 million. The Royal Mint is playing down the data, as it doesn't want to under... Tags: Payments, Retail banking

Paul Penrose - Finextra - London | 08/04/2009 | 7091 views

Too big to fail, or too big to compete?

UK retailer Tesco is not alone in enjoying the benefits of 'safe haven' status as consumers turn away from distressed banks and move their assets to more trustworthy institutions. The UK's Co-operative Bank - which last month posted a 70% rise in underlying profit for 2008 - is reporting a 123% annual increase in customers switching their current ... Tags: Retail bankingGroup: Trends in Financial Services