ING Direct to stop accepting mortgage applications

ING Direct has announced that they will stop accepting new mortgage applications from February 28, 2013. Barclays confirmed in October 2012 that they were buying ING Direct and their £10.9bn deposit book and £5.6bn mortgage book. ING felt that it was a sensible step to stop lending as they look to avoid customer confusion while the transfer to Barclays goes through. The purchase is still subject to legal and regulatory clearance. In a separate announcement, The Co-operative bank has announced that they will close 37 high street branches of the Britannia Building Society by the end of 2013. If a Britannia branch is within half a mile of a Co-operative branch, it is likely to be closed or merged with a Co-operative Bank branch. Britannia merged with The Co-operative Bank in 2009. 04 February, 2013