LeasePlan Bank will shortly take a temporary break in accepting new customers. This move has been taken due to the bank’s early success, which has resulted in closing in on the target set for total deposits entrusted with the bank in 2010.

 

Since LeasePlan Corporation opened the new internet savings bank in February of this year, more than 50,000 customers (mainly private) have deposited over EUR 1 billion.

 

LeasePlan Bank’s internet savings account is an innovative product for the Dutch market. LeasePlan Bank offers an interest rate on its savings account, which automatically tracks the market interest rate and which is increased by a mark-up. Another key feature of the internet savings account is that interest is added monthly.

 

Existing customers will not be impacted by the temporary break, says LeasePlan Corporation. “They can continue to save and invest with the bank. The expectation is that the temporary break for new customers will start next week, which still leaves room for 1,000 new customers. The expected break will last for minimum of a few months”, according to LeasePlan Corporation.

 

LeasePlan Corporation established the internet savings bank as a means of further diversifying its financing base. LeasePlan earlier expressed its intent to finance between 10% and 20% of its financing needs through LeasePlan Bank, which is to be achieved over the medium term.

 

The news comes ahead of LeasePlan Corporation reporting its half-year figures, where net profit rose by 50% from EUR 61 million to EUR 90 million in the first six months of 2010. LeasePlan will publish its full half-year report on 30 August 2010.