HBOS, the UK's biggest mortgage lender, has shocked the City with the admission that it had lost its battle to stop customers joining rivals for better deals during the first half, reports The Times.
The owner of the Halifax said its share of the net lending market was poised to fall below 10 per cent. The slide in its mortgage market share means HBOS will be leapfrogged as the number-one mortgage lender by Spanish-owned rival Abbey, which holds about 11% of the market. Abbey, owned by Santander, has embarked on an aggressive campaign to win market share in the UK. The dramatic disclosure by HBOS, which claims a "natural" share of the mortgage market of as much as 20 per cent, sparked a 4% drop in its share price in early deals, down 40p to 1030p. THE BANK OF ENGLAND will be forced ...
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