Lloyds TSB denies web bank delay

UK bank Lloyds TSB has denied that it will put back the UK launch of its internet bank following recent security concerns at other online banks.

According to the Financial Times, Lloyds TSB had planned to launch Evolvebank to UK customers at the end of this year, but has pushed back the public launch until next year after other online banks suffered security glitches.

But the bank said today that it had always planned a measured approach to the launch of Evolvebank and is "on track" with the roll out. It will trial the online service with a small number of UK customers later this year prior to a full launch to the public.

"We have always been on track with the launch. We are adopting a cautious and phased approach to ensure we can deal with huge capacity without falling over," said a spokeswoman for Lloyds TSB.

Evolvebank launched in Spain this week following a trial with 100 customers. It plans to build a customer base of 60,000 in the first 12 months of operation in that country.

Earlier this month, Roger Moore, who played British secret agent James Bond in the 1970s and 1980s, had his Swiss bank account details published on the web following an error by bankers Credit Suisse.