Bank of Dave boss: It is lenders’ turn to help you
‘We saved banks, now they have to help us’: Dave Fishwick, inspiration for the film Bank Of Dave, calls on lenders to help with rising mortgage rates
‘We saved you, now it’s your turn to help us’ – that’s the message to Britain’s big money lenders from Dave Fishwick, founder of Burnley Savings And Loans and source of inspiration for the film Bank Of Dave.
His call came as ministers urged banks and building societies to make it easy for homeowners as borrowing costs are soaring.
Working class hero: Dave Fishwick, founder of Burnley Savings And Loans, and wife Nicola
“The banks make a profit.” Fishwick told The Mail on Sunday. ‘They don’t seem to be passing on those huge interest rate increases to their savers.’
The big five banks, plus construction company Nationwide, raised £44bn in net interest income last year – the difference between what they charge borrowers and pay depositors.
The amount was £8 billion more than in the previous year and will continue to rise.
The lenders insist they have done nothing wrong. Lloyds and NatWest – bailed out by taxpayers 15 years ago – suggest the margin they make on their interest rate cheating has peaked. But Fishwick has his doubts.
“This appears to be a key strategy in their business model,” he said. He wants the government to tax banks on their windfalls – something number 10 has so far excluded – and reclaim previous bonuses from executives.