Money.co.uk

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Money.co.uk
Type of site
Private
Available inEnglish
OwnerZPG plc
IndustryFinance and insurance
URLMoney.co.uk
Launched2008
Current statusActive

money.co.uk is a UK-based price comparison website launched in 2008.[1] It compares financial products including credit cards, bank savings, and mortgages. The company is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority registered under Dot Zinc Ltd.[2] In 2015 it was ranked as having the second fastest growing profits of the top 100 private companies in Britain by The Sunday Times BDO Profit Track 100 league table.[3]

History[edit]

money.co.uk was launched under the parent company Dot Zinc Ltd,[4] by founder and Managing Director Chris Morling,[1] who featured 754th on Sunday Times Rich List 2015.[5][6]

In the year to 31 October 2014, pre-tax profits were at £15.6 million [7] and the site has received an average of over 2.5 million visits a month.[8]

In September 2017, ZPG plc, which owns the property website firm Zoopla, purchased the company in a £140 million deal.[9]

Marketplace[edit]

money.co.uk compares financial products, with emphasis on things such as credit cards and bank savings rather than insurance like competitors.[6] The site provides comparisons for around 60 products [10] and generates revenue through commissions from the financial products it offers.[7]

As part of the company's business proposal, Hannah Maundrell, the Editor-in-Chief of money.co.uk,[11] has been featured in the national press advising consumers about their online purchasing rights [12] and ways to manage credit and debt.[13]

Operations[edit]

The company has an auditing process in place for any payday loan providers who wish to be listed on money.co.uk. If a lender or broker refuse to complete the questionnaire consisting of 70 questions, they will not be listed on the website. In the year to 23 July 2014 there were 38 brokers and lenders listed on the website.[10] To aide customers in their financial comparison decision making, money.co.uk hosts finance-based guides.[14]

The company previously had its head offices in the 150-year-old Cecily Hill Barracks, a former British Army barracks in Cirencester, Gloucestershire, known locally as ‘The Castle’.[4] It also has a satellite office in London.[15]

The main Cirencester offices are spread over three floors and include a staff gym, lounge and a games room that contains a foosball table that was formerly owned by Hollywood actor Robert Downey Jr..[4] In May 2015, the company was ranked seventh among all small UK companies on the Best Workplaces list.[16]

Following a £3 million renovation of ‘The Castle’ by Bath-based workplace design and build firm Interaction,[17] the company received huge press coverage.[citation needed]

Brand Overhaul[edit]

In 2014, the company underwent rebranding that involved a new logo, website and its first national TV advertising campaign, which featured competitive Los Angeles-based sign spinner Jeremy White.[18][19]

In January 2017, a multimillion-pound campaign was launched with a TV advert showing scenarios where individuals checked different things, finishing with “you haven’t checked until you’ve checked money.co.uk”.[20][21]

Awards[edit]

  • Winner – Best Online Comparison Site–eCommerce Awards 2013 [22]
  • Winner – Best Mortgage Comparison Site – What Mortgage Awards 2013 [23]
  • Finalist – Digital Business of the Year – National Business Awards 2013 [24]
  • Winner – Best Overall Website – Digital Media Awards 2014 [25]
  • Silver – Company of the Year, Financial Services – Stevie Awards 2014 [26]
  • 58th – The Sunday Times Hiscox Tech Track 100 league table 2014 [27]
  • Second – The Sunday Times BDO Profit Track 100 league table 2015 [3]
  • Seventh – Best Workplaces, Small Business – Best Workplaces 2015 [16]
  • 62nd – The Sunday Times Hiscox Profit Tech Track 100 league table 2015 [28]
  • Winner – Best Comparison Site for Mortgages – What Mortgage Awards 2016[29]
  • 9th - Best Small Place to Work – Great Places to Work Awards 2016[30]
  • 7th - Best Small Place to Work - Great Places to Work Awards 2017[31]
  • Runner up – Best Comparison Site for Mortgages – What Mortgage Awards 2017[32]
  • 2-star accreditation from Best Companies, BCI score: 711.5[33]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "2015 The Sunday Times BDO Profit Track 100". Fast Track. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 1 December 2015.
  2. ^ "The Financial Services Register". Register.
  3. ^ a b "2015 The Sunday Times BDO Profit Track 100". Fast Track. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 1 December 2015.
  4. ^ a b c "Big Interview Chris Morling Founder Of Fast Growing Gloucestershire Business money.co.uk". South West Business. 13 August 2014.
  5. ^ "Rich List 2015". Retrieved 5 August 2015.[dead link](Subscription required.)
  6. ^ a b McMillan, Peter (27 April 2015). "Cheltenham business personalities feature on rich list". Gloucestershire Echo. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 1 December 2015.
  7. ^ a b "Profits Up At Fast Growing Comparison Website". InsiderMedia. 10 August 2015.
  8. ^ "money.co.uk calls in Tracy Dickerson". Gorkana.
  9. ^ Adam Samson (7 September 2017). "uSwitch parent ZPG to buy Money website in deal valued at up to £140m". Financial Times.
  10. ^ a b "Payday Lending Market Investigation" (PDF). Digital Cabinet Office.
  11. ^ Maundrell, Hannah (7 September 2015). "What students should do now that Virgin West Coast has scrapped its Railcard 'double discount'loophole". The Independent.
  12. ^ "What rights do you have when returning online purchases?". BBC News. 12 December 2013.
  13. ^ Beach, Darren. "Managing credit and debt in long-term relationships". Experian.
  14. ^ Morling, Chris (29 July 2014). "The Entrepreneur: Chris Morling, money.co.uk". Startups.
  15. ^ "Cirencester's Money.co.uk is Cotswolds' fastest growing private business". CotswoldLife. 20 April 2015.
  16. ^ a b "Great Work Places 2015" (PDF). Great Places To Work. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 September 2015. Retrieved 1 December 2015.
  17. ^ "Money.co.uk Office Design Case Study".
  18. ^ West, Gillian. "Money.co.uk seeks to become a 'household name' with brand overhaul and first TV advertising campaign". The Drum.
  19. ^ "Spin-First credit card TV advert from money.co.uk(August 2014)" (video). money.co.uk.
  20. ^ Jack Seale (21 January 2017). "The new money.co.uk advert: we're swiping our way closer to death". The Guardian.
  21. ^ "Money.co.uk "You haven't checked until you've checked" by Fold7". Campaign Live. 4 January 2017.
  22. ^ "One Year On: Money.co.uk and the best online comparison site award". Insights Ecommerce Expo.
  23. ^ "2013 What Mortgage Awards Winners". What Mortgage.
  24. ^ "Dot Zinc Limited (money.co.uk)". National Business Awards 2013. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 1 December 2015.
  25. ^ "Digital Media Awards Winners". Digital Media Awards.
  26. ^ "2014 Company/Organization Awards Category Stevie Award Winners". The International Business Awards.
  27. ^ "2014 The Sunday Times Hiscox Tech Track 100". The Sunday Times Tech Track 100. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 1 December 2015.
  28. ^ "The Sunday Times Hiscox Tech Profit Track 100 league table 2015". The Sunday Times Profit Tech Track 100. Archived from the original on 9 September 2015. Retrieved 1 December 2015.
  29. ^ "What Mortgage Awards: 2016". What Mortgage. July 2016.
  30. ^ "UK's Best Workplaces: Small Category 2016". Great Place to Work. 2016. Archived from the original on 13 February 2018. Retrieved 13 February 2018.
  31. ^ "UK's Best Workplaces: Small Category 2017". Great Place to Work. 2017. Archived from the original on 13 February 2018. Retrieved 13 February 2018.
  32. ^ "What Mortgage Awards: 2017". What Mortgage. July 2017.
  33. ^ "Money.co.uk: BCI". best companies.