Lloyds TSB

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Not to be confused with Lloyd's of London.
Lloyds TSB Bank Plc
Former type Public limited company
Industry Financial services
Fate Split into TSB Bank and Lloyds Bank
Founded 1995 (1765)
Defunct 5 June 2005
Headquarters London and Edinburgh, United Kingdom
Key people Sir Winfried Bischoff (Chairman)
Antonio Horta-Osorio (Chief Executive)
Products Banking and Insurance
Employees 45,856
Parent Lloyds Banking Group Plc
Subsidiaries Lloyds TSB Scotland Plc
Scottish Widows
Website www.lloydstsb.com

Lloyds TSB Bank Plc is a retail bank in the United Kingdom. It was established in 1995 by the merger of Lloyds Bank – established in Birmingham in 1765 and traditionally considered one of the Big Four clearing banks – with the TSB Group which was established in 1810.[1] Lloyds TSB has an extensive network of branches and ATMs in England and Wales and offers 24-hour telephone and online banking services. As of 2012 it has 16 million personal customers and small business accounts.[2] In Scotland, the bank operates as Lloyds TSB Scotland Plc.

Following its acquisition of HBOS in January 2009, the parent Lloyds TSB Group was renamed Lloyds Banking Group.[3] In 2009, following the UK bank rescue package, HM Government took a 43.4% stake in Lloyds Banking Group, which later announced that it would sell a standalone retail banking business of 632 branches, including the TSB brand, in order to comply with European Union state aid requirements.[4] Lloyds TSB Bank will thus be rebranded as Lloyds Bank by the end of 2013.[5]

In October 2011, Moody's Analytics downgraded the credit rating of 12 UK financial firms including Lloyds TSB, blaming financial weakness.[6]

Contents

History [edit]

For more details on this topic, see Lloyds Bank and Trustee Savings Bank.
The Halifax branch of Lloyds on George Square, built 1897.[7]

The bank was founded in 1765 as Taylors and Lloyds in Birmingham. This private bank converted into a joint-stock company in 1865, becoming Lloyds Bank Limited in 1889. In 1995, it acquired the demutualised Cheltenham and Gloucester Building Society. The Trustee Savings Bank (TSB) was founded by the Revd. Henry Duncan of Ruthwell, Dumfriesshire, in 1810, and in 1985 the TSB Group was incorporated under the Companies Act.[8] The modern bank was created under the aegis of its CEO from 1984 to 1997, Sir Brian Pitman, who narrowed the bank's business focus and reacted to disastrous lending to South American states by trimming its overseas businesses and seeking growth through mergers with other UK banks. Pitman unsuccessfully tried to acquire The Royal Bank of Scotland in 1984, Standard Chartered Bank in 1985, Midland Bank in 1992 and Abbey National in 2001, and in 1995 merged Lloyds with TSB Group and the Cheltenham & Gloucester Building Society.[9][10][11] Lloyds TSB commenced trading in 1998, after the statutory process of integration had been completed.[12]

Lloyds' three Scottish branches were absorbed into TSB Scotland, which remained separate to TSB Bank in England and Wales following consolidation. TSB Northern Ireland was sold to Allied Irish Banks before the merger in 1991; the bank does not have a presence in Northern Ireland. TSB Channel Islands was integrated into TSB Bank in 1992. Lloyds Bank International merged into Lloyds Bank in 1986 since there was no longer an advantage in operating separately.[13] The Scottish Widows Fund and Life Assurance Society were demutualised and subsequently acquired by the Group in 2000.

In October 2011, Lloyds TSB's credit rating was reduced by Moody's from Aa3 to A1.[14] The action was taken in the light of a shift in government policy to move risk from taxpayers to creditors by reducing the level of support offered to financial institutions.

Services [edit]

The Teddington branch of Lloyds in Middlesex, designed by Randall Wells in 1929.[15]

The bank offers a full range of banking and financial services. Lloyds TSB Offshore Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary, operates branches in Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man, while Lloyds TSB Bank (Gibraltar) Limited operates in Gibraltar; both trade as Lloyds TSB International. Lloyds TSB is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority, is a member of the Financial Ombudsman Service, the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, the Association for Payment Clearing Services and of the British Bankers' Association. Mortgages provided by Lloyds TSB Bank in England and Wales are administered by Cheltenham & Gloucester Plc; Cheltenham & Gloucester and Lloyds TSB Scotland are members of the Council of Mortgage Lenders. Conversely, C&G savings are actually investments in Lloyds TSB Bank. The bank uses the following series of sorting codes:—

Range Note
30 to 39 former Lloyds branches
77-00 to 77-44
77-46 to 77-99		 former TSB branches
87 Lloyds TSB Scotland

The Lloyds TSB Foundation funds local, regional and national charities working to tackle disadvantage across England and Wales.[16] There are separate Foundations covering Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Channel Islands.

Lloyds TSB on the Headrow in Leeds.

Sale of branches [edit]

It was announced in 2009 that Lloyds TSB Scotland, and some branches of Lloyds TSB in England and Wales, would be sold by Lloyds Banking Group under the TSB brand, together with branches – although not the name – of Cheltenham & Gloucester. The process could take up to four years to complete.[17]

Controversies [edit]

Mistreatment of customers [edit]

The methods used by a high-profile Lloyds TSB service The Collections Dept., based in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, has been strongly criticised by consumer groups,[18] as have manoeuvres allegedly designed to take advantage of legal loopholes to avoid repaying charges levied against its clients.[19] Lloyds has also been accused of religious discrimination in connection with its overdraft charges.[20]

Dissatisfaction with service, and inefficient and unfair banking transactions, have been recurring themes in surveys conducted about Lloyds, and other UK High Street banks.[21] In 2003, Lloyds TSB was fined £100 million for its part in mis-selling high risk investment bonds.[22]

Links to arms trade [edit]

In December 2008 the British anti-poverty charity War on Want released a report documenting the extent to which the UK high street banks invest in, provide banking services for and lend to arms companies. The report stated that Lloyds TSB is the only high street bank whose corporate social responsibility policy does not mention the arms industry, yet is that industry's second largest shareholder among high street banks.[23]

Tax evasion [edit]

In 2009, the BBC's Panorama alleged that Lloyds TSB Jersey was encouraging wealthy customers to evade tax. An employee of Lloyds was filmed telling a customer how several mechanisms could be used to make their transactions invisible to the UK tax authorities.[24] This action is also in breach of money laundering regulations in Jersey.[25] Lloyds subsequently claimed that this was an isolated incident which they were investigating.[26]

Complaints via the Financial Ombudsman Service [edit]

Lloyds TSB received 9,952 complaints via the Financial Ombudsman Service in the last half of 2009. This, when added to the other constituent brands of the Lloyds Banking Group, was twice the number of complaints received by Barclays, next most complained-about UK bank. The Financial Ombudsman Service upheld fewer complaints against Lloyds TSB than it did against Barclays.[27]

Divestment of TSB [edit]

On 24 April 2013, it was announced [28] that detailed plans were in place for a re-branding of 632 branches as TSB, and this would be visible as new signage from Summer 2013, at which point the TSB Bank (Project Verde) would begin to operate as a separate business within Lloyds Banking Group.

References [edit]

  1. ^ Lloyds Bank to merge with TSB Group New York Times, 12 October 1995
  2. ^ Lloyds TSB: Case Study The Work Foundation, January 2005
  3. ^ Change of Company Name press release by Lloyds TSB Group plc, 16 January 2009.
  4. ^ Rights Issue and Capital Enhancement Proposals Presentations and Webcasts, Lloyds Banking Group, 3 November 2009
  5. ^ Lloyds Bank outlines journey to new brand Press Release 99/10, Lloyds Banking Group, 13 September 2010
  6. ^ UK financial firms downgraded by Moody's rating agency, BBC (7 October 2011)
  7. ^ COMMERCIAL STREET 1. 1164 (West Side) SE 02 NE SP/147 Lloyds Bank II 2, see Images of England No. 447622 National Monuments Record, English Heritage (Retrieved 23 November 2009)
  8. ^ Trustee Savings Banks Act 1985 (cap. 58)
  9. ^ Philippe Naughton Last updated at 1:46PM, 29 March 2012 (12 November 2011). "Banking giant Sir Brian Pitman dies at 78". Business.timesonline.co.uk. Retrieved 2012-03-29. 
  10. ^ "obituary: Sir Brian Pitman". Telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 2012-03-29. 
  11. ^ Roger Cowe. "obituary: Sir Brian Pitman". Guardian. Retrieved 2012-03-29. 
  12. ^ Lloyds TSB Act 1998 (cap. 5)
  13. ^ Lloyds Bank (Merger) Act 1985 (cap. 9)
  14. ^ "Moody's downgrades 12 UK financial institutions". Moodys.com. Retrieved 2012-03-29. 
  15. ^ 1. 5028 HIGH STREET (north side) Teddington No 23. Lloyds Bank TQ 1671 23/26 II 2, see Images of England No. 205455 National Monuments Record, English Heritage (Retrieved 23 November 2009)
  16. ^ About Us Lloyds TSB Foundation for England and Wales (retrieved 3 October 2009)
  17. ^ Proposed Alternative to GAPS/Capital Raising RNS Announcements, Lloyds Banking Group, 3 November 2009
  18. ^ Rae, Charles (10 July 2007). "Worst bullying case in 30 years". London: Sun Newspaper online. Retrieved 2009-08-30. 
  19. ^ Consumer forum http://www.consumerforums.com
  20. ^ Martin, Arthur (22 August 2009). "An overdraft? That'll be £200 at Lloyds TSB (but only £15 if you're a Muslim)". London: Mail Online. Retrieved 2009-08-30. 
  21. ^ Smith, Claire (30 November 2010). "More customers keen to switch as high street banks slated on service". Edinburgh: The Scotsman online. Retrieved 2010-11-30. 
  22. ^ Stevenson, Rachel (26 September 2003). "Lloyds gets record £100m fine for mis-selling 'precipice' bonds". London: The Independent on Sunday. Retrieved 2009-08-30. 
  23. ^ Anna Morser (October 2008). "Banking on Bloodshed: UK high street banks' complicity in the arms trade" (pdf). War on Want. Retrieved 2012-11-02. 
  24. ^ Sweeney, John (21 September 2009). "Tax inquiry into Lloyds off-shore". BBC. Retrieved 2009-09-23. 
  25. ^ "Q&A: Panorama on Lloyds offshore". BBC. 21 September 2009. Retrieved 2009-09-23. 
  26. ^ http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/markets/article-1680648/Lloyds-under-fire-after-BBC-tax-revelation.html Referenced 13/03/2013 16:20 UTC
  27. ^ Insley, Jill (25 February 2010). "Lloyds group tops ombudsman complaints". London: Guardian online. Retrieved 2010-02-26. 
  28. ^ http://www.lloydsbankinggroup.com/media/pdfs/investors/2013/2013Apr24_LBG_Verde_Update.pdf

External links [edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Lloyds TSB
Banking
Insurance
Wholesale
Historical
Defunct
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Lloyds_TSB&oldid=555631267"