You know the saying, put your money into bricks and mortar and you’ll see a long term return, but it seems one Irish artist has taken that advice literally. As an artistic statement about the bankrupt Irish economy, Artist Frank Buckley has built a house made from over 1 billion euros of shredded decommissioned notes.

Frank Buckley's Billion euro house is made entirely from €50,000 bricks of shredded decommissioned notes

The billion Euro house sits in the lobby of the Glass House in Dublin, an empty office building in the city centre. The money, which comes in pulped bricks of shredded decommissioned notes, was loaned to the artist by the Mint.

The idea came to Mr Buckley while he was waiting for a friend outside the building and the owners of the Office block were immediately keen on the idea. He had been given a block of the shredded notes to use as confetti at his wedding, which acted as inspiration. The unemployed artist simply asked the Mint for a lorry load more and while there was almost as much paperwork involved; the Mint were more than happy to assist.

Citizens throughout the UK are having one of the most difficult times buying new homes than any other point in the past century. Stagnant wages, increasing unemployment and raising home prices are making the prospect of buying a house nearly impossible for many people, especially citizens under the age of 35.

The fact that banks are unwilling to lend much money is even more concerning. Now the banks have added another complication that makes the situation even worse: they are still increasing mortgage fees. According to recent research, mortgage fees have increased by 70% in the past 12 months. The average fee for committing to a mortgage has increased to almost £1,500. This is the highest in the history of the country. The average worker makes that amount of money or less in an entire month.

Meanwhile, tens of thousands of home-buyers are looking for a new abode every month. They shop around for the best possible rates and these kinds of fees just add more grief to their lives. Mortgage rates are increasing for many existing homeowners as well. Many homeowners have no choice but to use their credit card or payday loan to pay their mortgage each month. Meanwhile, credit card fees are increasing as well and payday loans charge about 4,000% interest.

According to one research organization, mortgage fees were less than £900 a year ago. They are skyrocketing as struggling banks look to pass more of their financial burdens onto their customers. The highest fees are now over four times that amount.

Increasing mortgage fees have dampened the hopes any hopes England’s central bank had for the country when it pledged to keep interest rates low. The Bank of England hoped that it would be able to encourage banks to lend more and at more affordable rates for consumers.

Nevertheless, some experts contend that the increased mortgage fees are not necessarily a bad thing. As long as the larger fees are associated with lower interest rates, customers can still come out ahead, especially if they are looking to take out a large loan.

The problem with this position is that mortgage rates have been consistently low for quite some time. Even though mortgage rates have been declining consistently, they are no longer doing enough to offset the rising fees. This is likely to make the financial burden even worse for customers for a long time to come.

According to Paul Smee, Director of the Council for Mortgage Lenders, many people may now be unable to achieve their dream of ever owning a home. Smee even went so far as to say that the concept of home ownership is an “unrealistic assumption” for many people.

Billionaire Richard Branson took over Northern Rock plc earlier this month. Following the takeover, Branson’s holding company Virgin Money will be responsible for the 75 branches and 21,000 staff that currently work for Northern Rock.

Many investors have praised the takeover, arguing that it was the only hope that the bank had to avoid a complete banking collapse. However, customers of Northern Rock were not as optimistic about the deal.

Branson announced that he intended to impose an annual £60 fee on all existing bank accounts. This approach is likely to create a lot of controversy and be met with hostility by existing bank customers.

Therefore, Branson has decided that it would be unwise to proceed with only offering fee charging accounts and decided to take a different approach. Instead of charging fees on all accounts, Branson intends to offer customers the choice between opting for free accounts or accounts that charge fees in exchange for incentives. Incentives include opportunities to earn discounts gym membership or trips through Virgin Flights.

Although the new proposal is being met with less criticism, many consumer groups are still skeptical of Branson’s new solution. These groups argue that these deals tend to be of low value and are likely not worth as much as the customers would be paying each month. Nonetheless, it is encouraging for many people to see that Branson is at least working on a new system that would help eliminate mandatory fees for Northern Rock customers.

Eddy Weatherill, of the Independent Banking Advisory Service states that customers are becoming increasingly concerned over the fees being implemented by banks throughout the UK. Weatherill even went so far as to say that no one trusts banks anymore and that bankers are going to need to implement much more equitable programs if they intend to regain that trust.

Many consumer advocacy groups praised reporters who brought the situation to their attention and put pressure on Virgin Money to withdraw the fees. They were afraid that if they failed to get Branson to back off of the fees, other bankers would revoke free accounts as well.

The new announcement directly contrasted statements made by Virgin Money at the beginning of the year. Branson’s employees argued that the fees were fairer and more transparent than those issued by a number of other banks, which were often issued with more secrecy.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2084996/Richard-Branson-backtracks-60-bank-fees-Northern-Rock-takeover.html#ixzz1jf2O9dn2

The latest UK figures for unemployment show the highest number of people without a job since 1994, with 2.68 million out of work. The figures, released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed some discouraging statistics including:

- 29.7% of youths aged 16 – 24 unemployed

- 8.4% of the economically active population unemployed

- 0.3% rise in umemployment on the previous quarter, a rise of 118,000.

- There were 2.68 million unemployed people

- Highest number of unemployed people since 1994

If you’re employed in the private sector you may be surprised to read that both regular pay and bonuses rose by 1.9% on the same period last year. Of course this is cold comfort for many who face the threat of redundancy and not much good to public sector workers but it does show some positive movement.

Any early signs of a smile emerging may be wiped off your boat race by the predictions of leading analysts, declaring that the UK has already slipped back into recession. On the plus side, it’s the Olympics this year and what better than a national showcase to bind the multi-cultural societies of our great nation (if you’re not proud about your country, it couldn’t help).

If we reported on every discrepancy that was made by an insurer, bank or lender then it would be all we ever wrote about, but a recent fine imposed by the FSA is definitely worth mentioning. The Combined Insurance Company of America (CICA) has been hit with a fine of £2.8m for employing a ‘high-risk’ pay scheme that governed the wages of their sales agents.

The City watchdog slapped CICA with a £2.8m fine

The Financial Services Authority (FSA) said that the way sales staff earned their money led to customers being at risk of being treated unfairly when buying accident and sickness insurance. As a result of the findings, CICA has agreed to look into the way customers are treated and pay compensation to where appropriate.

Most of CICA’s policyholders were self-employed or small business owners with the FSA citing the following business failures that led to the fine:

- Sales staff with less-than-adequate qualifications and missing references

- Failure to ensure that sales staff had the knowledge to provide appropriate advice

- Paying sales agents on a commission-only basis was deemed ‘risky’

- Customer complaints and rule-breaking sales staff where not dealt with adequately

The above issues combined with the £2.8m fine (reduced from £4m after an early settlement) and FSA ruling has resulted in CICA not taking on any new business since October last year.

Many service providers such as airlines and retailers have been charging excessive credit card fees to their customers. Often, these fees could exceed £12. The cost of the actual transaction was about 60 times less than that. The Treasury said these fees must be continued.

Mark Hoban from the Treasury said that these providers have been abusing this practice for some time. In fact, many of them have gone so far as to charge more for the credit card fee than the product itself.

One of Hoban’s colleagues said that customers have become very frustrated with the way they have been ripped off by these providers. After listening to their resentment and frustrations, the Treasury has decided things need to be changed.

According to new policies, a new law will need to be in place by year’s end to ensure these credit card fees are put to an end. He said that these institutions have been deceptive as to how they are implementing these fees. As a result, customers are misled as to how much they are going to pay. Due to the fact that some institutions charge more for a credit card fee than another, credit card holders may not realize that they are actually paying more for one service over another.

In fact, the cost of purchasing tickets at some airlines has grown substantially in the past seven years. In some cases, the fees have increased 15 times over or more. The Office of Fair Trading is on board with making sure these practices are put to a stop. They said that airline passengers alone are paying nearly £300,000 pounds every day. Therefore, when these new changes are put into place, they want businesses to be fair and react to them in a timely manner.

The OFT first learned of the extent of the damage these fees have to customers back in June. They have been working on finding a fairer policy ever since.

Hoban said that the UK will be the first country in Europe to implement such a law. He believes that other countries will follow the UK’s lead and ban the use of credit card fees as well.

According to a recent report, banks have charged travelers about £20 million in fees to buy foreign currencies. A statement from Consumer Focus said that this practice must come to an end after facing criticism from the Office of Fair Trading.

Speakers from Consumer Focus have found that the fees the banks charge are typically around 1.5-2% of the amount of currency being exchanged. However, the exchange rate for travelers using debit or credit cards can be closer to 5%. This has enabled banks to get over £1 billion pounds in fees off of these travelers. These fees have been hidden within purchases that were made abroad and many customers have been completely blindsided by the fees the banks imposed on them while they were traveling to the UK.

The banks were charging these fees to customers every way they possibly could. Even travelers who brought prepaid cards into the UK ended up paying a number of fees on their purchases. Apparently, travelers didn’t have any possible way to escape these fees before the OFT decided to get involved and get the banks to withdraw them.

The biggest conspirators in this case have been five of the biggest banks in the UK. Many UK citizens weren’t surprised at all to find out that Barclays, Santender and Lloyds were among the companies have had to face criticism from the OFT and a number of consumer advocacy groups. These banks have all agreed to drop the bank fees they have been charging. Many other banks operating in the UK and abroad do not charge any such fees, so this may help them be more competitive in the long run.

In addition, the banks have agreed to be more open about their policies on the charges they issue to foreign travelers. Although this sounds like these banks are turning over a new leaf, Consumer Focus and a number of other critics aren’t sure their scruples have changed. Many feel that the banks are just going to increase fees on other services to make up for the waved travelers fees.

It’s hard to believe that it’s already been three years since the meltdown of our economy and the subsequent bank bail out. Yet today, well over 1000 days later, we still find ourselves in the midst of a crisis that threatens to bankrupt a handful of European countries and dramatically change our economic structure for the foreseeable future.

Japanese consumers took it slow in the 90's, as their economy saw little growth

While the bail out sured up the banking sector and gave investors confidence, it did little to increase consumer confidence or reduce future unemployment rates. But it must be said that we’re not at risk of collapse, we may face a 90′s Japan-esque decade of very low growth, but it’s still growth and there’s very little chance of things going the way of Greece or Italy.

The problem, that’s been well highlighted, is our economy’s dependence on the banking sector instead of more reliable (but less glamorous) industries such as manufacturing and exporting physical goods. The Office of National Statistics (ONS) ‘Blue Book’ reports that the financial sector accounted for 31.9% of Gross Value Added (GVA) to the British economy, yet in size it only makes up 5.1% of it.

The Banking sector is small in size but unmatched in economic contribution

The result is a financial sector that employs few people and produces nothing that can be bought by other countries but contributes massive tax receipts. The major problem is that, unlike Germany who’s Mittelstand makes niche items of a high quality that will always be in demand somewhere in the world, our banking sector can collapse simply due to a lack of confidence.

But, that’s our bed so to speak and unless we have a radical rethink on the structure of our economy; we’ll be sleeping in it for a while yet. So, with the banking sector (and our economy) still in need of protection, David Cameron made a decision on Friday to go against a new EU proposal to place bank charges on financial transactions that could see financial institutions upsticks and leave the City.

Cameron veto'd the FTT in Brussels on Friday

The new Financial Transaction Tax (FTT) would be a tax on every purchase or sale of stocks or bonds or whatever financial product by a bank. Like any tax, if we all pay then it’s fair, but the problem is 75% of the total tax paid through FTT would be paid by banks located in the UK. This would leave banks with no real incentive to base themselves in the City of London and could see them leave, taking huge tax payments with them and damaging our economy.

That’s why Cameron veto’d it, but he’s going to have to explain himself to his right, sorry, left-hand man, Nick Clegg and other MP’s later today, many of whom fundamentally disagree with the veto, fearing it may distance us from Europe. Such an outcome could mean difficulties with trade, relations and important economic ties, which could also spell disaster as Europe is by far our largest trading partner.

Clegg and Cameron don't see eye-to-eye over the EU veto

So, going with the FTT or against it has implications but whether we support it or not the EU can vote in favour of the new charges and force them upon us. It’s difficult to know what will happen with FTT but the bigger question is what will happen to the Euro Zone and the EU as a whole. The fallout from FTT may well shape a new EU and the inability to save Greece, Italy and even Spain could see them leave the single currency, as could their unwillingness to continue with austerity cuts and tax hikes.

While these outcomes are unknown, one thing is for sure – the next five years will see a major shake up of the European Union and the Euro Zone and anyone who tells you they know exactly what’s going to happen is either back from the future or a fool.

Banks have stopped charging debit card fees to their customers, which is something that customers have worked long and hard for. However, after all the petitions and fights to end the debit card fees, these customers are less than satisfied with the outcome. Unfortunately, the fees are probably not going to end anytime soon and customers are just as irate as ever.

While many customers are intend on openly protesting, others have decided that they are going to protest in a more subtle way. They are just moving their money out of their bank accounts and putting it in credit unions.

This movement is something they have been considering for some time now. In a recent BBC article, Lorin Oberweger mentioned how she had been planning on moving her money out of her bank account for the past three years. Like many other customers, she wanted to put her money somewhere where big corporations had less influence. Credit unions provided that safeguard for her, in addition to offering lower rates.

According to a founder of a firm that specializes in delivering financial solutions to consumers, approximately a third of all people think about changing their banks. Historically, only about a tenth of customers ever take the leap to do so. That trend has changed in recent years. Over the past few years, twice as many people have left their banks due to raising fees or declining standards of service.

The Alite group conducted a survey of customers from the United Kingdom, the United States and France. They wanted to see what customers thought about their banks. This survey revealed that customers’ trust in banks dropped to the lowest level ever in 2009. Clearly, they have become even more frustrated in more recent years.

Plenty of things have taken place over the past few years that have caused the feelings of resentment that customers are experiencing. The banks may be coming to realize that customers are willing to limit their power. Bank of America tried to implement a new policy on charging customers a monthly fee to use their debit cards. The bank revoked the fee just over a month later.

However, customers have not limited the banks’ power to the point where they are going to be able to make a serious difference any time soon. According to Tim Pannel of Financial Marketing Solutions, it would take more than 40,000 customers joining the Bank Transfer Day group on Facebook before the banks got the message loud and clear. The banks are going to keep implementing these charges until customers decide to take a more definitive stand on the issue.

Over the past month, bank customers have done everything they can to vent their frustrations against the big banks. They have been extremely upset over the debit card fees charged by Bank of America and a number of other services. At first, they felt their protests were heard loud and clear by the banks. However, their enthusiasm has since dwindled.

Consumers aren’t the only ones to start venting their frustrations over the banking fees. A number of small businesses are also starting to feel the pain as well.

According to a post in This is Money, many petrol retailers are being pushed to the limits of their ability to meet their obligations. Businesses that sell petrol have already been struggling to deal with the existing competition. Many private retailers are unable to compete and only a little over 5,000 continue to operate in the UK. This marks a 75% decrease in the number of petrol retailers over the past 20 years.

As the banks shy away from issuing bank fees to their end customers due to reforms and customer protests, they are going to continue to raise the rates for retailers. Banks have been trying to regain the interest of their customers by issuing premium cards and cash back programs on fuel purchases. Inevitably, these fees need to be imposed on someone and retailers have been taking the brunt of them in more recent months.

One of the most hardest programs for petrol retailers to deal with is the Santander 123 program. Although customers are happy that they can receive up to 3% cashback on all their purchases, retailers know that many of those fees have to come back to them.

The fees generally sneak their way into the retailers bill through the interchange fees. Many people have speculated that the interchange fees are much higher for rewards cards than most other credit cards. One petrol retailer told reporters that his fees increased more than 50% as customers have started using more rewards cards.

The banks are going to keep looking for ways to get their money out of their customers. Inevitably, someone seems to always have to pay the price and small businesses need to take some of the brunt as well.