banks

The UK Government must step up its pressure on lenders if it wants to free the market from its "heavy constraints", the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) says.

Average LTVs for residential mortgages fell by 2% to 67% in Q2 2009 as banks remained cautious about lending, according to research by the Mortgage Advice Bureau.

Banks, building societies and credit unions will be asked to pay £406m as their initial contribution to the costs of the five bank defaults of 2008.

Mortgage approvals hit their highest level since March 2008, according to the latest statistics from the British Bankers Association (BBA).

Lloyds Banking Group is to cut a further 1,200 jobs with the company's insurance and IT arms expected to bear the brunt.

The City will be forced to publicly reveal the pay and bonuses of hundreds of traders and bank executives under a Treasury-backed plan to be released later today, reports The Guardian.

Banks and building societies are preventing home ownership, according to a poll commissioned by the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA).

Chancellor Alistair Darling last night expressed confidence Britain was on the road to economic recovery but warned the financial sector could not return to 'business as usual' and a 'culture change' for banks was essential.