Bank moves into county

A Swedish bank has moved into Shropshire as part of a major expansion across the country.

Bosses at Handelsbanken are hoping that a strategy for personal customer service and tailored accounts will provide a winning formula for the branch in Shrewsbury which is holding an official opening next month.

The office at Shrewsbury Business Park was the 51st branch of Handelsbanken to open in Britain and will be manned by Shropshire staff, led by manager Malcolm Sutcliffe.

Mr Sutcliffe said: "Handelsbanken has been around since 1871, we are one of the largest banks in Sweden and we have been in the UK since the 1970s.

"We started off with four branches and about six years ago started a programme of growing branches in Great Britain.

"We do a lot of business through professional and customer referral, but working with the local professional community we hope to grow our client base, whether that be corporate or individual.

"We use local solicitors, valuers, and if we need due diligence on business we use local accountants, it's all based around the concept that local people, doing business locally, make the best decisions."

Mr Sutcliffe, who spent 20 years with a high street bank before joining Handelsbanken, believes the branch won't suffer because of its Swedish parentage.

"Our model is de-centralised, so the branch is at the centre of everything. The bank recruited me and I recruited the team, who are all from Shropshire and know the local market.

"And we have the ability to make decisions here. We have no standard pricing, no standard tariff, no standard interest rates, we sit down with every client and see what their requirements are and then tailor a bespoke solution for each client."

Targeting the quality end of the market, Mr Sutcliffe believes the key to the branch's success is long-term, personal relationships with clients and staff who are not beholden to daily sales targets or product selling.

"We have no call centre, our customers are dealing with staff from Shrewsbury. Customers want to know who they are dealing with."