Be careful, finance minister tells savers

Savers should be careful where they put their money, finance minister Wouter Bos is reported as saying on Thursday in a debate on the problems at internet bank Icesave, which has hit 120,000 Dutch customers.

‘Savers have their own responsibilities. High interest rates can bring high risks. You have to look at who is offering these stunt rates,’ the Volkskrant reports Bos as saying.
The paper says Bos has not yet agreed to compensate Dutch savers whose assets have been frozen by the Icelandic bank. The first €20,887 of savings fall under Iceland’s responsibility, while the Dutch state will make up the rest, to a maximum of €100,000.
‘But a lot still has to happen before I will let the taxpayer pay for the failure of an Icelandic bank,’ Bos said.
Efforts behind the scenes to reach a deal are continuing at a diplomatic level, he said, adding that he did not rule out legal action.

Office closed
Iceland took control of Icesave’s parent bank, Landsbanki, on Tuesday when it ran into financial difficulty.The Icesave Dutch office is now closed and the 30 staff sent home, the Financieele Dagblad reports.
Name plates and its letter box have also been removed, the paper says. The bank’s website carries a statement saying that all transactions made since Monday afternoon have not been processed.
In Britain, Dutch banking group ING has bought up the savings activities of two Icelandic banks in trouble.
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