EVENT: How To Make Regional Mutual Banking A Reality
- Tony Greenham, RSA Senior Associate & Executive Director, South West Mutual
- Fran Boait, Executive Director, Positive Money
- Tuesday 2nd April 2019, 9.00am-10.15am, Committee Room 10, House of Commons
To register please contact dominic.lindley@newcityagenda.co.uk
Tony Greenham, (RSA & South West Mutual) is championing a new wave of community banks – banks owned by their customers and free to invest in local businesses. He will discuss what this new model looks like, why more regional mutual banks are needed and how this should be accomplished.
There is significant evidence that smaller scale regional banks, particular those with a social mission, perform better on financial inclusion, credit allocation to the real economy, SME lending and supporting regional growth. These reasons were at the heart of the recommendation from the RSA Inclusive Growth report that the Government should explore and encourage the establishment of regional banks.
More diverse banking systems are more economically resilient, including geographical diversity, diversity of institutional governance and ownership, and diversity of business (and funding) models.
UK banking and competition policy has lowered barriers to entry, increasing the number of new banks. There are also greater diversity of business models through the rise of Peer-to-Peer lending and fintech/digital banks. However, it has performed less well on encouraging regional and institutional diversity. Is this because there is no case for these institutions, or that they are too difficult to establish?
The Community Savings Bank Association was set up in 2015 to address the practicalities of starting mission-driven regional banks and to support the formation of regional co-operative banks throughout the UK. There are now four in the early stages of seeking a banking licence: Greater London Mutual, South West Mutual, Avon Mutual and the brand new Banc Cambria in Wales.
Tony Greenham is the Executive Director of South West Mutual, one of these new regional challengers, the RSA’s Senior Associate in Inclusive Finance and a Senior Fellow of the Finance Innovation Lab. He is a Chartered Accountant and former investment banker who has co-authored a number of research and policy reports on banking reform, including the economics textbook ‘Where does money come from? A guide to the UK monetary and banking systems’ and ‘Stakeholder banks: the benefits of banking diversity’.
Fran Boait is Positive Money’s Executive Director and a Director of the Board of Finance Watch. Fran studied Natural Sciences at the University of Cambridge and went on to complete a PhD researching carbon dioxide storage. Fran has worked at various global organisations including the United Nations, Greenpeace and BP.
Do join us for what we expect to be an insightful event. Please could you confirm your attendance by contacting dominic.lindley@newcityagenda.co.uk
