Bank Of Butterfield Adjusts Loan Rates
The Bank of Butterfield announced that “in step with today’s 25 basis point increase in the US Federal Funds Rate, the Bank has adjusted its Bermuda Dollar Base Rates on Bermuda Dollar loans.”
“The Bermuda Dollar Base Rate for residential mortgages and consumer loans will increase from 3.75% to 4.00%, Butterfield’s first rate increase on mortgages and consumer loans in over eight years,” a bank spokesperson said. ”The Bermuda Dollar Base Rate for corporate loans will increase from 4.00% to 4.25%.
“The rate increase on consumer and corporate loans takes effect immediately. The rate increase on residential mortgages will take effect on 6 March 2017.
“The dollar amount of borrowers’ monthly loan and mortgage payments will not increase, as Butterfield is automatically extending the terms of loans and mortgages to assist customers with the rate adjustment.
“Customers who wish to increase monthly payments to maintain the current term of their loans or mortgages should contact the Bank. Personal/Premium Banking customers should contact Consumer Credit on [441] 298 4799. Corporate Banking and Private Banking customers should contact their relationship managers.
“Butterfield is not adjusting deposit rates at this time.”
wouldn’t it be nice if they surprised us and said, “nope, stuff the US, we’re keeping rates the same…” fat chance, eh?
never happen……..we try to be so big and boasty but are reallly following the band!!!!
Except that if they’d done that when rates went down it wouldn’t have looked so good.
Difference though is that in the USA, your rate might now be about 3.5% to 4.5% depending on terms. But here, we will be paying about 6%+ plus now – obviously the banks here have done a very bad job of managing their loan risk and will make us all pay for their mistakes.
The mortgage rates should have dropped, like the rest of the entire world!!!! Where was our relief during the down time? Our rates should have been cut in half. Increasing rates at this point should be not allowed!!!!
Correct, this is their base rate. With all of their other risk loads, the rate that the consumer signs up for will now be around 7% !!
Notice how there is no mention of an increase for saving accounts. Just more cost for borrowers and no benefit to people with savings.
@ Ringmaster
oh they mentioned it, “Butterfield is not adjusting deposit rates at this time.”
so they lend at higher rate but borrow at the same rate, as if the spread wasn’t big enough!
Yes, they did indeed mention an increase…their fees are going up! Check out their notice online. Fees are increasing, some by as much as 100%. It’s costing us more and more to use the banks. You get no interest and you have to pay them crazy fees to get your money from them. I’m going to take my couple of dollars and put it under my floorboards!!
Yes, where is the interest rate hike for people who are holding their funds in the bank. You might as well keep it under the mattress. I can’t remember the last time I earned interest on my savings account!!! But I am certain they are using my money to earn!
Yep, that’s your “Bank of the Year” for you.
When will depositors benefit from the rate rise? Our mortgage payments will be extended into eternity because we can’t afford increased payments.
Jeremy they did precisely that years ago when the rate went down !
Have you noticed the increased rates on credit cards!!! Lord have mercy!!!
Hopefully, the increase you’ve passed on to us willl mean better service?! I know…must be kidding, right?
Funny thing – when the US put their rates down to almost zero in 2008, Bermuda rates were still quite high, very high comparatively on a global basis. Bermudian mortgage payers have been dealing with those high rates while the economy has been in freefall.
Now there’s an uptick in rates in the US and – “whooaa hey we need to increase rates because the Americans are…”
What is the average Bermudian paying in interest compared to their American counterpart?
Highway robbery. Nothing less. The US increases their rates due to an economy on the verge of overheating (due to low rates) and BNTB decides what – yeah Bermuda is in the same boat? The US is at emergency rate levels of 0.50%, they are moving to to 0.75%. This is a gradual way to get out of emergency rate levels…what percent are we at again?
Banks have out lived their usefulness! One way street these days! They treat your money like is theirs and they zing you with fees for everything.
Bermuda’s becoming the most over-regulated place in the world!
Need a lawyer to open bank account? 1 day to transfer money less than one mile.
Need a central bank and a good credit union!
Smiths
Nice business being a banker: pay me .25%, if I’m lucky, on my savings account and then turn around and lend it to someone at 7%. The mafia would be ashamed to make 6.75% profit on every loan!
Just what a recovering economy needs! Butterfield are such twats sometimes.
Banks are essentially a necessary evil and provide no value to anyone other than their shareholders. Customers are at the bottom of the heap. Actually not true, staff are at the bottom
When the rates went down they didn’t react this quickly! If they waited 3 months after the fed change to lower the rates they should have to wait at least that long before raising them after a rate change.
What options do we have?
UP THE RATES AND DOWN WITH THE ORGANIZATION.
2 million changes hands here every day here, yet Bermuda lives from the skin of the rice pudding.
There is no free ride any more, because that country over there prospers so big business will milk the cow for all its worth and as a consequence the banks up the lending rates , using your money, private enterprise will double that and you wonder why tourist don’t come here and stay a while ,we have become an Anglo American sea side place down at the Horseshoe.
That is not so any more ! is it ? and you wonder why many today are out of work, or sent home with a no growth early retirement package that is a hole in the bucket dear Liza.
Back then it was the policy at the time that the customer came first with many of the services being complementary,the reason being that with out customer there is no bank.
Every body prospered.
You might also be interested to know that the bank built this island from the ground up many saw it happen, as many of our homes and businesses were financed through the bank.
Every body prospered.
There were the very few who could not meet their loan obligations
it was the bank who would negotiate better or alternate repayment program, there were many who eventually turned the tide and became investors.
Every body prospered.
I was employed at the Bank of Bermuda Ltd for over a quarter of a century in many departments, the banks were run and managed by Bermudians.
Every body prospered.
Until the experts walked in the door !
The banks policies have changes, you don’t matter, what have we got to show for it ? Unemployment; poverty; broken homes;drug abuse; unrest and depression to name a few and a country where the Government who is up to its eye balls in debt.
So, you won’t see a change in your payment but you had better plan on working a couple of years longer to pay the difference in the amount you now owe! So nice of them to think of YOU! If I were the mortgage payer and if I could afford it I would call them up and ask them to increase my monthly payment. Who wants to work longer?
Think of the additional interest payable – hundreds of thousands extra by extending the term
HSBC not changing their rate – we should all move our mortgages over….
This is an absolute disgrace! Not one single discount was given over the last several years as rates fell and remained at record lows. Now the second they go up they stick it to their customers!! Disgusting!!
So why aren’t we protesting outside the banks! !!