The mutual is dead! Long live the mutual! Resurrecting the mutual financial model after the UK Co-operative Bank’s ‘fall from grace’

The demise of the mutual finance model announced in the UK parliament is arguably a little premature especially as the reason behind the declaration was the widely reported misfortune of the Co-operative Bank. While not completely immune to recent economic events, there has been little focus on those mutual societies that reportedly have had ‘a “good” credit crisis’. This paper, based on empirical research, considers the impacts of the financial crisis on building societies’ performance. It explores if and how building societies have demonstrated resilience; why might this be the case; and suggests a renewed argument to be made regarding the value of mutual models.