Alex@rtnVFRmedia Suffolk UKMay 18, 2017
@ebel @stefanieschulte @mattcropp
I think it was the building societies that demutualised. This was sold to the customers on the claim there was quicker access to money (cheque clearing times went from 10 to 3 days), access to ATMs via magnetic strip cards instead of passbooks etc..
Show threadStefanie SchulteMay 18, 2017

@vfrmedia @ebel @mattcropp This is the story of the UK building societies, to my knowledge: https://www.thenews.coop/85589/sector/big-bang-demutualisation-building-societies-failed/

"Demutualisation was an undoubted failure, as the shareholder owned mortgage banks that resulted all failed."

Show threadStefanie Schulte

@mattcropp @ebel @vfrmedia
Furthermore...

"Sensing the opportunity, speculative investors, dubbed ‘carpet-baggers’ opened accounts so they could vote for demutualisation and share the spoils."

https://www.thenews.coop/85589/sector/big-bang-demutualisation-building-societies-failed/

(The term "carpet-bagging" as such is kind of controversial, though, as I learned on Twitter, because of its history in the US.)

May 18, 2017 at 4:47pmWeb
Show threadMatt Cropp 🌲🌲May 18, 2017

@stefanieschulte @ebel @vfrmedia

Yup, in #UShistory, "carpetbaggers" was a used by southerners during Reconstruction post-Civil War to describe opportunistic northerners coming south. Definitely some problematic racial history to the term.

That said, people entering a #coop or #mutual organization with the intention of advocating for and profiting from #demutualization are some of the lowest form of scum in my book... 😡

Show threadAlex@rtnVFRmedia Suffolk UKMay 18, 2017
@stefanieschulte @mattcropp @ebel I remember this starting around era of a short term boom in UK economy and easier credit for all. To be fair it did seem UK was doing well internationallly but in hindsight much of the money seems to clearly have come from this madness + (over)valuations of UK's service/"creative" industries whilst neglecting manufacturing,engineering and agriculture..
Show threadStefanie SchulteMay 18, 2017
@vfrmedia @mattcropp @ebel Sounds like the "finance curse": http://speri.dept.shef.ac.uk/2014/11/13/finance-curse-grand-narrative/
Show threadAlex@rtnVFRmedia Suffolk UKMay 18, 2017
@stefanieschulte @mattcropp @ebel
my old town (Reading, just 50km West of London) has suffered loads from this, now the finance companies have heavily downsized there are empty offices everywhere, rising crime/drugs problems due to lack of entry level jobs and even high schools closing for lack of funding (where I live now isn't so bad as there are many farms and two active ports)