I’ve been debanked by Virgin Money takeover, says Nationwide rebel

Nationwide has closed the accounts of a campaigner who led calls to give members a say in the building society’s £2.9bn takeover of Virgin Money.

Mikael Armstrong has collected more than 5,000 signatures demanding a vote on the deal, the biggest takeover in the sector since the 2008 financial crisis.

It would create Britain’s second-largest savings and loans group and has already been approved by Virgin Money shareholders.

Armstrong argued that the 16 million members of Nationwide, which owns Britain’s largest building society, should also be put to a vote.

But in a shocking twist, the Mail on Sunday has learned that Armstrong’s various accounts with the society were frozen in April, just as his campaign against the deal was in full swing.

“It’s very unlikely to be a coincidence,” he said. “I was not given any reason or justification.”

News of its “debanking” comes just ten days before Nationwide’s annual general meeting (AGM), where directors including chief executive Debbie Crosbie are up for re-election. Nationwide has hosted the event exclusively online, which campaigners see as an attempt to stifle dissent. Campaigners also argue that some members have been reluctant to voice their opposition to the deal for fear of being debanked.

Armstrong has been a Nationwide customer for more than 25 years, but his de-banking means he has lost his membership status and is unable to attend the AGM.

He argues that voting against all resolutions “is the only effective method of protest left to Nationwide members who feel they have been treated with contempt by a mutual society that is supposed to adhere to democratic principles.”

Like other building societies, Nationwide is a mutual society, meaning it is owned by its millions of members. The deal with Virgin Money is still awaiting approval from the Financial Conduct Authority, the City’s watchdog.

The FCA is also due to publish its final report on debanking later this month. Its publication, which was delayed until after last week’s general election, will focus on banks’ treatment of PEPs (politically exposed persons), such as MPs, peers and their families, who may be vulnerable to financial crime. The report follows a furore over NatWest’s decision to debank Reform Party leader Nigel Farage, which led to the resignation of the bank’s chief executive, Dame Alison Rose. The FCA has said it cannot change the law requiring additional checks on PEPs.

But the question of whether controls on PEPs are proportionate, appropriate and do not create unnecessary barriers for public servants and their families is being examined.

Armstrong said Nationwide filed its lawsuit late last year. In March, before Virgin’s offer was announced, it was told it had three months to move its accounts to another provider.

But on April 19, he received a letter from the company “out of the blue” freezing his accounts and ordering him to “make other arrangements” for his banking operations while further checks were carried out.

Nationwide said it could not discuss individual accounts.

A spokesperson said: “We do not close accounts because someone expresses legitimate opinions. We are not aware of any instances where accounts have been closed solely because of someone’s political comments or opinions.”

The company continues to comply with “its legal and regulatory obligations,” the spokesman added.