Consumer confidence in mutuals still high
Fri, 29 May 2009
The level of consumer trust in mutuals can help them take advantage of the upturn when it comes, it has been claimed.
According to the Building Society Association (BSA), 55 per cent of chief executives in the sector remain optimistic about 2009 and predict that 2010 will be a more positive year.
The society bosses said they felt the building society model was trusted by the general public and would continue to thrive.
Adrian Coles, director-general of the BSA, echoes this view, stating that "generally building societies are well capitalised with lots of liquidity and I would say trusted".
He comments that consumer confidence in building societies has been "dented, but not fundamentally undermined".
"Any money lender can get it wrong and lend to the wrong people who eventually are not going to be able to repay the loan that you have given them," Mr Coles states.
"It does happen even in the mutual sector but at least building societies didn't get involved in American subprime, didn't get involved in structured investment vehicles and weren't overly reliant on the wholesale markets."
Earlier this week, the BSA said building societies "remain a real and attractive alternative to the banks".
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