West Brom set for name relaunch
West Bromwich Building Society is set for a re-launch with plans to add the name Birmingham to its title.
It unveiled plans to ditch its 'tarnished' name, as it was revealed that its chairman Brian Woods-Scawen is to quit.
Bosses at the West Brom rekcon that the name change is vital to its plans to expand into Birmingham.
But they also want to draw a line under a financial crisis that almost saw it disappear from the high street.
Mr Woods-Scawen, who became the West Brom's chairman in 2006, told members at the AGM at the Banks's Stadium that he would be stepping down once a replacement is found.
The building society has experienced massive losses and had been thrown into controversy by the £680,000 pay-off of former chief executive Stephen Karle, who quit suddenly in October.
Although the society denies any specific new name has yet been devised, chief executive Robert Sharpe believed the intention was to reflect a wider West Midlands coverage for the 160-year-old Black Country business.
He added that Mr Woods-Scawen had already met with Birmingham City Council leader Mike Whitby to discuss the proposal.
Councillor Whitby, he believes, "would be very pleased to help us establish a presence in Birmingham city centre".
Mr Sharpe added: "The brand may be a little tainted, a little tarnished. It may be time for a new name, more descriptive of the area we are going to cover."
But he insisted any name change would have to get the support of a majority of society members.
In June the society was saved from a potential collapse and a Dunfermline Building Society-type break-up by the creation of a brand new type of financial instrument.
