Customer Union for Ethical Banking
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| Founded | February 2016[1] |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Unit 21, 41 Old Birley Street, Manchester, M15 5RF |
| Location |
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| Members | 1,200 (2019)[2] |
| Website | saveourbank |
The Customer Union for Ethical Banking is a United Kingdom consumer organisation campaigning for The Co-operative Bank to maintain and strengthen its ethical standards and return to co-operative ownership in the future.[3] It has also played a part in pressuring the leadership of the bank to implement external auditors for its annual values and ethics report.[4] It has over 10,000 registered supporters among the bank's customers, as well as 1,200 paying members.[5]
Issues at the bank
[edit]In the first half of 2013, the Co-operative Bank (then a subsidiary of the Co-operative Group) lost £700m, making the planned expansion of the bank impossible, and raising some warning signs for the bank's customers. Later that year, in May, a £1.5bn "black hole" was found in the bank's accounts. This failing was largely blamed on the bank's chairman, Paul Flowers and the takeover of Britannica Building Society in 2009.[6][7]
This led to the eventual takeover of the bank by several hedge funds, to plug the financial gap of the bank, which otherwise would have collapsed.[8] In April 2017, the Co-operative group sold off its remaining 20% stake in the bank, marking an end to co-operative ownership. At this time, serious questions were raised by the Save our Bank campaign about its ethical status, with the union saying that the bank 'would not stand a chance' if it did not continue with its ethical policy.[9][10]
History of the union
[edit]The consumer union was born out of the Ethical Consumer Magazine's Save our Bank campaign, which was spun off into a separate co-operative society in 2016, after a successful £30,000 crowdfunding campaign was completed. The union says that becoming a co-operative society will help their members to 'contribute to the debate on how to keep ethics at the heart of financial decision-making at the Co-op Bank'.[11] In 2019, the Customer Union signed a recognition agreement with the bank.[12]
In the future, the union has said that it will hold the Co-operative group to account for the continued implementation of its ethical policy. It also plans in the future to slowly buy a share in the bank, in a bid for an eventual return to co-operative ownership.[13]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "FCA Mutuals Register". Retrieved 1 July 2020.
- ^ "Customers clinch victory as Co-op Bank recognises ethics campaign". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
- ^ "A union of Co-op bank customers | Save Our Bank". saveourbank.coop. Retrieved 2020-06-30.
- ^ correspondent, Kalyeena Makortoff Banking (2019-12-05). "Customers clinch victory as Co-op Bank recognises ethics campaign". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2020-06-30.
{{cite news}}:|last=has generic name (help) - ^ "Save Our Bank". Ethical Consumer. 2018-05-30. Retrieved 2020-06-30.
- ^ "Co-operative Bank's former chairman 'seeking help' after drugs admission". THE GUARDIAN. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
- ^ "Profile: Paul Flowers". The Telegraph.
- ^ "Co-op Group makes loss as bank stake written off". BBC. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
- ^ "Co-op Group makes loss as bank stake written off". BBC.
- ^ "Co-operative Group's stake in Co-op bank to fall to 1%". BBC News. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
- ^ "CUEB gathering on ethical future of Co-op Bank". Co-op News. Retrieved 2020-06-30.
- ^ "Co-operative Bank signs agreement with customers union". Co-op News.
- ^ "Save Our Bank". Ethical Consumer. 2018-05-30. Retrieved 2020-06-30.