British mortgage bank Alliance & Leicester has shelved plans to launch a stand-alone Internet-based service for wealthy individuals.
The Financial Times quoted A&L Managing Director Peter McNamara as saying the decision was made in the wake of the difficult market for Internet-only banks and the marketing costs needed to attract customers.
Instead, A&L would concentrate on targeting the "mass affluent" market through new products on its existing Web site.
A&L has spent 15 million pounds (AU$40.4 million) to develop the service, but the technology would be used for its site. The 60 staff working on the project were expected to be redeployed.
Several UK banks have already launched Internet banks for the mass affluent market, a lucrative, fee-driven sector set to grow significantly in the coming years in Europe.
Among these are Abbey National, Barclays and Halifax.
HSBC has a new global online joint venture with US investment bank Merrill Lynch for the well-off that is being launched in phases, and Credit Suisse has started a financial services portal aimed at the mass affluent.
