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LONDON, Jan 20 (Reuters) - Entrepreneurs who want to open abank in Britain can call a new helpline to chat about how muchcapital they need, and get invitations to rub shoulders withsupervisors.
The Financial Conduct Authority and the Bank of England'sPrudential Regulation Authority (PRA) said on Wednesday they hadopened a New Bank Start-up Unit to give information and supportto newly-authorised banks and people thinking of setting up abank.
The government is keen for new banks to enter a market whereconsumer banking is dominated by a handful of lenders such asHSBC, Barclays, Lloyds, RBS and Santander UK.
Regulators have already made changes, such as easing theinitial capital burden and fast-tracking approval of a newbank's top officials, leading to 12 new lenders authorised since2013 with more in the pipeline.
"With the launch of the New Bank Start-up Unit, applicantswill now benefit from having a single place where they can getthe advice and guidance they need to start a new bank andsupport once they are authorised," Bank of England DeputyGovernor and PRA Chief Executive, Andrew Bailey, said in astatement.
New banks will benefit from access to a helpline, meetingswith supervisors, regulator capital reviews, monthly updates byemail, and invitations to seminars on regulatory topics. (Reporting by Huw Jones; Editing by Mark Potter)
