Iceland to compensate UK savers
The collapse of the country's main banks in October last year left many UK depositors fearing the loss of their savings
Also In The News
|
A vintage display from West Indies captain Chris Gayle guided his side to a seven-wicket victory over Australia in their opening match of the World Twenty20 writes inthenews. |  |
Sunday, 07, Jun 2009 11:56
Iceland has agreed to begin repaying British savers after the UK government had to intervene in the wake of the failure of the Scandinavian state's banking system.
The UK government used anti-terror legislation to freeze funds held by the country's banks and then loaned Iceland £2.3 billion in order to prevent depositors from losing money.
Iceland has now agreed to repay the amount with interest to the Treasury.
Commenting on the deal, a spokesman for the Treasury said: "This is good news for UK taxpayers and good news for Iceland.
"The government welcomes Iceland's commitment to recognise its obligations under the EC Deposit Guarantee Scheme to repay depositors in Icesave," he added.
About 300,000 Britons held accounts with Landsbanki, which collapsed in October last year. The bank's Icesave brand attracted many depositors with its high interest rates.