Co-op sets up Reclaim Fund
CO-OPERATIVE Financial Services (CFS) has gained approval from the Financial Services Authority (FSA) to manage a central fund to reclaim around £400m worth of money from dormant bank accounts.
The new fund will be known as the Reclaim Fund. Although it will operate as a subsidiary of CFS, the organisation said it would not financially benefit from operating the fund but would run it as a not-for-profit organisation.
The money will then be held in a central pot so that it can be transferred back to customers who come forwards with claims for it, but any surplus will be transferred to support good causes via the Big Lottery Fund or the new Big Society Bank.
Customers can still reclaim money from their bank or building society, and any customer who thinks they may have money stored in an old account which they have forgotten about can visit mylostaccount.co.uk which provides a free tracing service.
Neville Richardson, chief executive of The Co-operative Financial Services, said: “As a trusted financial organisation, we have been delighted to step forward and offer our support to the Government and the industry in establishing Reclaim Fund. We do recognise the need for the fund and the benefits that it offers both the industry and wider community.”
Paul Mills, executive director of Reclaim Fund, said: “Our aims are very clear. While we will give as much money as possible to Big Lottery Fund for good causes, we will also be prudent in keeping back enough for customers who come forward to claim accounts they had forgotten about.
“I am very pleased that, after many months of careful planning and hard work on the part of my team, the financial institutions, including their trade bodies, and the Financial Services Authority, we are now ready to carry out those aims, as prescribed by the Dormant Bank and Building Society Accounts Act of 2008.”
Current industry estimates believe the Reclaim Fund will initially store around £400m-worth of funds and could distribute between £60m-£100m within its first year.
