At March 31st 1949, the Bank had a total amount standing to the credit of its Depositors of £83,368,124 - in the ten-year period leading up to that date, funds had increased by an incredible £56,687,563 (212%). During the same period, however, the level of Profits declined.

 

The post-war period saw a different scenario. The rate of savings declined generally due to a combination of lower wages, higher rates of inflation, and people having a gradually increasing choice of goods and services to purchase. This situation was reflected in various comments in the Bank's Annual Reports:

 

 

Deposits also declined because of account closures following the death of a depositor - the 1950s being a decade where some of the Bank's first customers of the 1920s reached old age. Competition for deposits was also increasing with the growth of Building Societies, and the rate of interest paid by the Bank (2¾%) became uncompetitive. Moreover, The Government placed a limit of £2,000 (raised to £3,000 in 1952) on the amount a depositor could hold, with an annual deposit limit of £500. However, from April 1st 1957, the Bank was allowed to open a second Savings Department where the first £15 of interest was free of Income Tax.

 

Total Deposits fell from £83,368,124 at March 31st 1949 to £81,929,350 at March 31st 1959, despite £22,541,281 being added to depositors' accounts in interest. Advances on Mortgage, however, reflected the post-war regeneration of interest in house purchase and increased from £1,552,084 to £5,431,639 over the same period.

 

Although Deposits were stagnant in this ten-year period, the annually reported Excess of Income over Expenditure ('Profit') increased (despite the set-up costs of the new Savings Department), improving the Reserve Ratio to 1.18%. Profits were reported annually as follows:

Year-Ended March 31st	Profit £	Cumulative £
1949		574,994
1950	12,457	587,451
1951	14,405	601,856
1952	19,983	621,839
1953	23,796	645,635
1954	28,810	674,445
1955	27,998	702,443
1956	37,995	740,438
1957	34,790	775,228*
1958	38,570	813,798
1959	32,534	846,332

(* This sum, plus the first six items listed below, equals the Cumulative Profit of the Bank prior to the introduction of the No 2 Department, ie £853,353)

The figures in the 'Cumulative' column shown above represent the accumulated totals of the Excess of Income over Expenditure for the period. In addition, there were transactions on the Reserve Funds as follows (£):

 

1950 - Addition to Reserve for Deferred Repairs	5,000
1951- Profit on Sale of Investment	22,500
1951 - Creation of Reserve for Income Tax	7,500
1952 -  Profit on Sale of Investment	30,625
1952 -  Addition to Reserve for Income Tax	5,000
1953 -  Addition to Reserve for Income Tax	7,500
1958 -  Addition to Reserve for Deferred Repairs	20,000
1959 -  Addition to Reserve for Deferred Repairs	40,000
1959 -  Addition to Reserve for Income Tax	15,000

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The amount of these transactions - £153,125 - when added to the £846,332 accumulated profits, produced a total amount of Reserves of £999,457, as shown in the 1959 published accounts as follows (£):

 

- Reserve for Repairs at Head Office and Branches	80,000
- Reserve for Income Tax	35,000
- General Reserve Fund	800,000
- Income and Expenditure Account	84,457

The position at March 31st 1959, therefore, was as follows:

 

 Amount standing to the credit of Depositors:    £81,929,350
 Advances outstanding, secured by Mortgage of Freehold and Leasehold Estate:    £5,431,639
 Reserve Funds (Balance of Income over Expenditure):    £999,457
 Ratio of Reserves to the Liability to Depositors (£81,929,350) was 1.22%.
 Number of Open Accounts:    724,130 (approximately 51% of the population in Birmingham and adjoining areas)