Characteristics of financial institutions
There are many different organisations. Here is a brief overview of some of them:
Bank of England
The Bank of England 'produces banknotes (cash) and oversees many of the other payment systems that you use (e.g. with a debit or credit card). They also work to keep the cost of living stable so that your money retains its purchasing power. One way that they do this is by changing the base rate of interest in the UK'.
Watch the video to find out more about the Bank of England:
Banks
Banks are institutions that deal in money and provide other money-related services. Banks offer banking, saving/investment and lending services.
Building societies
Building societies are similar to banks, in that they offer banking and saving services, but they are owned by their members.
Credit unions
Follow the link to learn about credit unions:
National Savings and Investments (NS&I)
Follow the link to find out more about National Savings and Investments:
Insurance companies
Insurance companies insure goods or people against harm or damage. We have already looked at some of the products and services they offer here:
Pension companies
When you pay into a pension scheme, the money will be invested by the pension company. They often invest in shares, which means the value of your pension 'pot' could go down or up.
Pawnbroker
A pawnbroker is a person or business, e.g. Cash Converters, who issue loans using personal goods as collateral. In other words, you leave an item with the pawnbroker and receive a sum of money in return. When you repay the amount, you will get the item back but if you fail to repay, the pawnbroker will keep and sell the property. Follow the link to find out more:
Payday loans
We have already looked at some of the products and services they offer here:
Read more about payday loans and their dangers here: