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| | | | | | C&G was founded in 1850 and, for almost 150 years, was a successful member of the UK's building society
movement. Like all building societies, the Cheltenham and Gloucester Benefit Building Society was set up with
purely local objectives to help sober, prudent and hard-working citizens to own their own homes.
| | While many societies were wound up once all the original members had bought a home, for others, C&G
included, the idea of becoming a 'permanent' society was a natural progression - still serving their original
social purpose, but open to new members.
| | So it was that C&G grew during its first 150 years. Then, in 1995, in a ground-breaking move, it de-mutualised
from building society status to become a part of Lloyds TSB Group as Cheltenham & Gloucester plc.
| | Although Abbey National had converted and floated on the Stock Exchange six years earlier, it was C&G's
conversion and acquisition that provided the catalyst for the series of demutualisations and acquisitions
that took place over the next two years - with Halifax, Woolwich, Northern Rock and Bristol & West all
converting from building society status.
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| | As well as delivering cash windfalls to members, C&G's conversion opened up a whole new realm of retail sales
to the lender. Within a few months, C&G was selling its mortgages through every Lloyds branch in the UK, giving
it the biggest distribution network of any lender. When Lloyds merged with TSB a few months later, C&G began
selling its products through their branches, too.
| | Over the next decade, C&G massively expanded its customer base and mortage lending, including establishing
itself as a leading supplier of mortgages through financial advisers as well as on the high-street. As a result,
Lloyds TSB quickly became the UK's third largest mortgage lender and C&G was established as an important part
of one of the world's best-known banks.
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| | And so the arrangement continued for 12 years, until October 2007, when efficiency improvements and the advent of
new international banking regulations led to the transfer of C&G's mortgage business and savings accounts to
its parent company, Lloyds TSB. The C&G brand remained however for both mortgages and savings, as did Cheltenham & Gloucester plc as the Lloyds TSB Group's mortgage expert - designing, marketing, selling and administering C&G mortgages for its parent.
What the transfer did mean was that Lloyds TSB Bank plc was now the lender for
C&G mortgages and the deposit taker for C&G savings. Also, as part of the transfer, a new subsidiary -
C&G Savings - was set up as a division of Lloyds TSB Bank plc to administer C&G savings accounts.
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| | Today, C&G mortgages are also available over the telephone and the internet, where customers can browse products
and start a mortgage application and financial advisers can submit business and track its progress online using C&G's
bespoke case management system.
| | But despite all the changes, Cheltenham & Gloucester plc and C&G Savings both still work hard to reflect the
fundamental values that have characterised the organisation since it was established - efficiency, personal service,
prudence, innovation and excellence. Through this combination of the modern and traditional, the C&G brand has grown
to be one of the most established and respected in its competitive and ever-changing field.
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