Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
New Barclays Consumer Spend data shows a record 94.6 per cent of all eligible in-store card transactions were made using contactless in 2024, surpassing the previous year’s record of 93.4 per cent. Shoppers used the technology more frequently, 236 times across the year, on average (vs. 231 in 2023) – and the cost of the…
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Consumer credit borrowing rose to £1.4 billion, higher than the average gain of £1.2 billion over the previous six months according to latest Bank of England data. Consumer credit borrowing by individuals was down from £1.7 billion in the previous month. Within this, net borrowing through credit cards decreased to £0.8 billion from £1.1 billion.…
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This week, the UK’s Supreme Court will hear a pivotal case regarding potential compensation for millions of motorists affected by unlawful hidden commission payments in the car finance sector. Following a Court of Appeal ruling that deemed such payments illegal without buyer consent, lenders, including major banks, have set aside substantial funds for claims that…
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Latest Bank of England data has shown that mortgage approvals slipped by 600 to 65,500 in February from a year ago, following a fall of 400 mortgage approvals in January. Approvals for remortgaging to a new lender were down by 800 to 32,000 in February, following an increase of 2,100 the previous month. Mortgage borrowing fell by…
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A majority of consumers are not optimistic about the economy, according to a KPMG poll. Three in five people say that the UK economy is worsening, leading even consumers feeling financially secure to cut back on spending. The number of people feeling that the UK economy is worsening grew by fifteen percentage points in the…
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The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has launched a new five-year strategy which aims to deepen trust, rebalance risk, support growth and improve lives. The FCA says it will focus on four priorities: Be a smarter regulator; predictable, purposeful and proportionate. The FCA will improve its processes and embrace technology to become more efficient and effective.…
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Specialist lender Together has promoted Liz Hooley to Head of Corporate Operations in a key restructuring of its Corporate Lending Division. Hooley, who has a 20-year career in corporate banking, lending and risk, will provide strategic and operational direction for the team and will work alongside Dave Rowlinson, the specialist property lender’s Head of Group…
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Four in ten parents with children at home (39%) don’t have life insurance, according to new research from Compare the Market. The research, based on a survey of parents with children under the age of 18, shows that nine in ten (90%) worry about how their children will cope financially if they die before their…
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A new report by Age UK has warned that groups of pensioners are still struggling with the cost of living, with one in three (34%), equivalent to 4.1 million pensioners stating that they felt less financially secure heading into 2025 compared to when 2024 began. The Charity’s new report highlights its concerns about the impact on older…
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The Bank of England has announced that it has held the base rate at 4.5%. The rate-setting Monetary Policy Committee voted in a 8 to 1 split in favour of holding the rate, one member preferred to reduce the bank rate by 0.25 percentage points, to 4.25%. The bank rate was cut from 4.75% to…
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More than two in three UK fintech companies (68%) are reporting higher fraud volumes compared with one year ago, according to new data published by Alloy. The research showed that 79% of UK fintechs say they lost at least £500,000 to fraud in the 12 months to October 2024. Two in five (38%) fintechs reported…
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New figures released by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) show that consumer car finance new business volumes fell in January 2025 by 3% compared with the same month in 2024. The corresponding value of new business grew by 4% over the same period. In the twelve months to January 2025, new business was 2%…
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New figures released by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) show that consumer finance new business grew in January 2025 by 2% compared with the same month in 2024. In the twelve months to January 2025, new business in this market was also 2% higher than in the same period in 2024. The credit card…
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