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Abbey National
The Abbey National Building Society was formed in 1944 by the merger of the Abbey Road and the National building societies.
It was the first building society in the United Kingdom to demutualise, doing so in July 1989. The bank expanded through a number of acquisitions in the 1990s, including James Hay, Scottish Mutual, Scottish Provident and the rail leasing company Porterbrook. Abbey National launched an online bank, Cahoot, in June 2000.
In September 2003, the bank rebranded as Abbey, and in November 2004, it became a wholly owned subsidiary of the Spanish Santander Group, with a rebrand following in February 2005. In January 2010, the savings business of Bradford & Bingley was combined with the bank, and Abbey National plc was renamed Santander UK plc. Prior to the takeover, Abbey National plc was a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index.
The National Building Society had its origins in the freehold land movement, sometimes called the “forty shilling freeholders movement”. In country areas, the voting entitlement was dependent on the possession of freehold land with an annual value of £2. This required a capital outlay of some £60-70 and was outside the reach of the average worker. A scheme to obviate this capital requirement was launched in 1847 as the Birmingham Freehold Land Society. In simple terms, the society arranged for the purchase of tracts of land and divided them into plots which individuals could purchase, the cost being met by regular subscriptions. The success of the Birmingham Society prompted a flood of other societies around the country, of which the National was one.
In 1849 The Metropolitan Freehold Land Society was formed, led by such prominent MPs as Joshua Walmsley, Joseph Hume and above all Richard Cobden. An application was made to register under the 1836 Building Societies Act but the registrar refused to accept the name. Accordingly, the name was changed to The National Permanent Mutual Building Society, with an authorization for it to be commonly called The National Freehold Land Society. Despite the building society registration and formal name, there was no doubt as to the National’s function. The 1852 Prospectus clearly stated that “The special objects of this Society are to facilitate the acquisition of freehold land, and the erection of houses thereon – to enable such of its members as are eligible, to obtain the county franchise”. (The name was changed in 1894 to The National Freehold Land and Building Society and finally to The National Building Society in 1930).
The Society was not allowed to purchase land in its own name, so purchases were made by the Trustees and quickly thirteen estates were purchased around London. Within four years, the National had become the largest land society in the country. There were over 100 such societies in existence and the National claimed to be taking forty per cent of the funds. Once the plots had been purchased, the National recognized the need to provide finance for the houses that were to be built on them. In 1854 it published its first advert, inviting applications for advances “for the erection of houses on the Estates”; those advances were not to exceed two-thirds of the net value and to be repaid over ten years.
Because the Society was not legally allowed to hold land in its own name, in 1858 it formed a separate company British Land to take over all the land previously held in the name of the Trustees. All the capital was subscribed by the National’s own investors but although British Land was financially distinct, there was a commonality of directors and staff. The objective was to make the National “more emphatically than it has ever been yet, a Savings Bank and Building Society.” At that point, British Land accounted for two thirds of the National’s advances. The importance of British Land to the National gradually diminished although it was not until 1874 that the proportion fell to below one half; after an internal row over the ownership of the National’s head office, all the advances were repaid in 1878.
The repayment of the British Land loans marked the final break with the old freehold land movement and this was formalized in 1880 when the National incorporated under the Building Societies Act 1874. This gave it two important advantages: it could act under its own name and it afforded limited liability to its members, probably a comfort after the events of 1878. In that year the City of Glasgow Bank collapsed creating widespread financial uncertainty. In the event, funds flowed into the National in excess of its ability to find borrowers and it decided to deploy surplus funds in the north of England. Losses were incurred and the National confined its operations to within 100 miles of London.
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Abbey National AI simulator
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Abbey National
The Abbey National Building Society was formed in 1944 by the merger of the Abbey Road and the National building societies.
It was the first building society in the United Kingdom to demutualise, doing so in July 1989. The bank expanded through a number of acquisitions in the 1990s, including James Hay, Scottish Mutual, Scottish Provident and the rail leasing company Porterbrook. Abbey National launched an online bank, Cahoot, in June 2000.
In September 2003, the bank rebranded as Abbey, and in November 2004, it became a wholly owned subsidiary of the Spanish Santander Group, with a rebrand following in February 2005. In January 2010, the savings business of Bradford & Bingley was combined with the bank, and Abbey National plc was renamed Santander UK plc. Prior to the takeover, Abbey National plc was a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index.
The National Building Society had its origins in the freehold land movement, sometimes called the “forty shilling freeholders movement”. In country areas, the voting entitlement was dependent on the possession of freehold land with an annual value of £2. This required a capital outlay of some £60-70 and was outside the reach of the average worker. A scheme to obviate this capital requirement was launched in 1847 as the Birmingham Freehold Land Society. In simple terms, the society arranged for the purchase of tracts of land and divided them into plots which individuals could purchase, the cost being met by regular subscriptions. The success of the Birmingham Society prompted a flood of other societies around the country, of which the National was one.
In 1849 The Metropolitan Freehold Land Society was formed, led by such prominent MPs as Joshua Walmsley, Joseph Hume and above all Richard Cobden. An application was made to register under the 1836 Building Societies Act but the registrar refused to accept the name. Accordingly, the name was changed to The National Permanent Mutual Building Society, with an authorization for it to be commonly called The National Freehold Land Society. Despite the building society registration and formal name, there was no doubt as to the National’s function. The 1852 Prospectus clearly stated that “The special objects of this Society are to facilitate the acquisition of freehold land, and the erection of houses thereon – to enable such of its members as are eligible, to obtain the county franchise”. (The name was changed in 1894 to The National Freehold Land and Building Society and finally to The National Building Society in 1930).
The Society was not allowed to purchase land in its own name, so purchases were made by the Trustees and quickly thirteen estates were purchased around London. Within four years, the National had become the largest land society in the country. There were over 100 such societies in existence and the National claimed to be taking forty per cent of the funds. Once the plots had been purchased, the National recognized the need to provide finance for the houses that were to be built on them. In 1854 it published its first advert, inviting applications for advances “for the erection of houses on the Estates”; those advances were not to exceed two-thirds of the net value and to be repaid over ten years.
Because the Society was not legally allowed to hold land in its own name, in 1858 it formed a separate company British Land to take over all the land previously held in the name of the Trustees. All the capital was subscribed by the National’s own investors but although British Land was financially distinct, there was a commonality of directors and staff. The objective was to make the National “more emphatically than it has ever been yet, a Savings Bank and Building Society.” At that point, British Land accounted for two thirds of the National’s advances. The importance of British Land to the National gradually diminished although it was not until 1874 that the proportion fell to below one half; after an internal row over the ownership of the National’s head office, all the advances were repaid in 1878.
The repayment of the British Land loans marked the final break with the old freehold land movement and this was formalized in 1880 when the National incorporated under the Building Societies Act 1874. This gave it two important advantages: it could act under its own name and it afforded limited liability to its members, probably a comfort after the events of 1878. In that year the City of Glasgow Bank collapsed creating widespread financial uncertainty. In the event, funds flowed into the National in excess of its ability to find borrowers and it decided to deploy surplus funds in the north of England. Losses were incurred and the National confined its operations to within 100 miles of London.