Scale hasn’t translated to a steelier performance for Virgin Money UK, the result of a tie-up between CYBG, the Clydesdale and Yorkshire banks group, and its eponymous rival in the months before the Covid outbreak. A share price that is in the doldrums could invite a much larger rival to take an interest in acquiring the bank’s assets and an arduous integration has not helped.
Saddled with a costly branch network and legacy IT systems that challenge the cost/income ratios of larger banks, the lender has been trying to cut costs since the merger. The latest setback? An overrun in the rollout of its online mortgage platform, now expected next year, and increased investment in attempting to improve customer service. The underlying cost-to-income ratio is
