Lloyds TSB launches UK's first banking 'superstore' for international customers

Lloyds TSB today opened the UK's first dedicated banking 'superstore' for international customers in the heart of Manchester, offering people moving to the UK a hassle free banking service.

The revamped store, to be formally opened in February, will provide a tailored service for all customers new to the country although it is largely designed to tap into the rapidly expanding Polish community in the Manchester area.

The store, based at St Mary's Gate in Manchester, will include a number of fluent Polish speakers on the front line, as well as offering account opening forms in Polish and Polish language brochures to help customers better understand the account features and account opening process.

Lloyds TSB also recently simplified its identification requirements so new customers only need one form of photo identification, such as passport or EU identity card, to open a current account. This is particularly advantageous for customers who are new to the country and might not have identification in the form of utility bills, for example. Previously the bank required two forms of identification to open an account.

As part of the launch of this new service, Lloyds TSB interviewed over 1000 Poles who are considering moving to the UK asking them about their concerns. Almost a quarter (21 per cent) said that sorting out their finances was their biggest concern. And 23 per cent were worried about the complexity of the account opening process.

The research also highlighted a clear demand for extra support to help simplify the account opening process. Over 80 per cent want account opening forms in Polish and eight out of ten said that they would be more attracted to a bank account which was tailored to their needs.

Gerrard Schmid, Lloyds TSB transaction banking director, said: "Our new international superstore will really help to take the fear factor out of opening a bank account for customers new to the UK. There is a clear demand for a tailored banking service and to meet this demand we have been adapting our procedures, in particular we have focused on making the account opening process as straightforward as possible for all our customers.

"If successful, we hope to launch a number of other specialised stores across the country later in the year."

More than 400,000 new workers have entered the UK over the last two years. Approximately 265,000 of these have come from Poland, which accounts for nearly two thirds (62 per cent) of the total number of applications from the 'accession 8': Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia

Lloyds TSB's Classic account and Select accounts are already proving to be a popular choice for the international community, with a large volume of Lloyds TSB's new current account customers coming from Poland.