The Bank of England has published its latest monthly Money and Credit report showing a slight jump in growth in consumer credit of 9.4 percent in the year to February 2018, up from 9.3 percent in January. Outstanding balances for consumer credit now stand at over £209.4 billion. Joanna Elson OBE, chief executive of the…
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The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has published its policy statement and finalised guidance on staff incentives, remuneration and performance management in consumer credit firms. In the latest Policy Statement, the FCA has responded to feedback arising from CP17/20 and published final rules for staff incentives, remuneration and performance management in consumer credit firms. These come into force on…
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New research by StepChange estimates that 1.4 million lower-income households resorted to high-cost credit to meet day to day living costs last year – up from 1.1 million households in 2016. The charity’s new research now identifies three distinct groups of those living on lower incomes in the UK, and how alternatives could be developed…
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The Scottish Government has announced that over £200 million of debt has been repaid since the reform of the Debt Arrangement Scheme (DAS) in 2011, Minister for Business, Innovation and Energy Paul Wheelhouse has announced. More than 6,000 people have now completed a debt payment plan through the scheme. Wheelhouse also announced a raft of…
Read moreCredit card debts have surged at the fastest annual rate in 12 years in February. The latest figure from UK Finance shows that consumer spending use of credit cards, with outstanding levels of card borrowing, grew at a rate of 6.3 percent over the year, whilst the use of loans and overdrafts continues to fall.…
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Latest UK Finance lending figures show that gross mortgage lending in February is estimated to have been £19bn, 4.9 percent more than a year ago but below the monthly average of £21.4bn for 2017, The data also shows re-mortgage approvals in the month are up over 9 percent in both number and value compared to…
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Barclays has announced that it will refund some of its loan and credit card customers in arrears. Barclays says the refund will be given to customers who weren’t provided with adequate service. Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) rules state that if a customer is in default or in arrears difficulties, the lending firm should, where appropriate, inform the customer that free and…
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Payday lenders have been named and shamed as the most unhealthy form of credit available in the UK, in a report launched in Parliament by RSPH, at an event attended by MPs and campaigners – including actor Michael Sheen – from the End High-Cost Credit Alliance. RSPH is calling for action to end the marketing…
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The number of people living in absolute poverty has fallen by 1 million since 2010, according to statistics by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). Figures show that children are around 5 times more likely to live in poverty if they live in a workless household, compared to a household where all adults work. The…
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The Central Bank of Ireland has published its latest mortgage arrears data, Highlights from the report includes: The number of mortgage accounts for principal dwelling houses (PDHs) in arrears fell further in the fourth quarter of 2017; this marks the eighteenth consecutive quarter of decline. A total of 70,488 accounts (10 per cent) were in…
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New figures released by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) show growth of 12% in consumer finance new business in January, compared with the same month last year. Credit card and personal loan new business together grew by 12% compared with January 2017, while retail store and online credit new business increased by 13% over…
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New figures released by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) show that new business in the point of sale (POS) consumer car finance market increased 7% by volume and 13% by value in January, compared with the same month in 2017. New business volumes in the POS consumer new car finance market fell by 4%…
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The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has published its approach to Supervision and Enforcement. When the FCA launched its Mission, it committed to publishing a series of documents that would explain its approach to regulation in more depth. These articulate how the FCA carries out its main activities, aiming to provide transparency to its thought process…
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