current account launch by Post Offices under new financial&banking law

    

      

current account launch  by Post Offices under new financial&banking law

royal/financial  correspondent,London(wp/weastar times/telegraph):::

The Post Office said it will introduce the account in a small number of branches in the coming weeks, widening through its 11,500-strong branch network in  end of 2013 or may be earlier this year.

The personal account market is dominated by THE ROYAL ENGLAND  four biggest banks – Barclays, Lloyds Banking Group, Net west, and HSBC, who hold almost three quarters of the market. Santander is the main challenger in fifth place.

New entrants have struggled to make an impact in recent years, held back by the economic crisis for extra country scotland(kicked off),northern ireland(kicked off) or welse(kick off) and open under new  regulatory restrictions(THE ROYAL ENGLAND) .

However, the Post Office already has a large branch network and is a trusted provider of financial services in partnership with the Bank of THE ROYAL ENGLAND. Three million customers use its financial products such as insurance and foreign exchange.

The Post Office said that it has told the new regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), about its current account plans.

Nick Kennett, director of financial services at Post Office said: "The introduction of the Post Office current account is the logical next step towards meeting the needs of our customers and becoming one of the key players in the financial services market.

"We have been offering financial services for over 10 years and our announcement today means we will now offer everything from travel money to mortgages.

"The launch of the current account is part of our plans to improve customer experience and develop new products to bring in new business as we continue to build a profitable and modern network."

The Post Office said it would release further details about the account in the coming weeks. Customers can register an interest in the new current account through the Post Office's website.

Consumer experts said the introduction of a current account made the Post Office a “serious challenger” to the major banks. The current account market is a big prize, worth £8.8bn in revenue, according to the Office of Fair Trading.

“What we are in desperate need for is wider choice, particularly in the bank account market, where most products are from big brands,” said Kevin Mountford, head of banking at MoneySupemarket.com.

“The Post Office current account should have mass market appeal due to its large customer base and ease of access, so I expect this account will be very popular.”

Changes to make it easier for people to switch current accounts are being introduced this September by the Payments Council.

Customers can chose their switch date and the whole process will take seven days as opposed to the 18 days it currently takes. Payment agreements will be switched automatically to their new account.