Peter Griffiths needs all his boxing instincts about him as Principality defends its patch. Douglas Friedli meets a born fighter.
Peter Griffiths does a good line in controlled frustration. The straightest, neatest looking chief executive in Wales with tie, crisp shirt and round glasses. Principality's boss has issues with the world he has been pitched into.
Frustrations include a credit rating downgrade by Moody's, which affected Principality and several of its peers. He rejects Moody's premise that Principality's stock of homes, mostly decent quality in popular areas, could fall in value by between 40 and 60 percent from the market peak. And he's frustrated at councils that have taken Moody's ratings as gospel and moved their funds out of Principality.
"The Moody's pendulum has swung too far," he says. "There will be a period now when everything calms down."
You sense that Griffiths is enjoying the battle. "In boxing, it's that challenge that there are only two of you and only one is going to win," he smiles.
Despite the fighting talk, there's an air of calm in Griffiths' central Cardiff office, graced by a yellow and blue picture entitled "Helping Hands". He's a democrat by nature who likes to align staff around his aims.
He says: "In the first year it was about hearts and minds. In the second it was about competitiveness. Then it was getting fit for purpose and the future. Those first five years were fun, then we got pitched into this."
Now the building societies have been caught up in the fallout from tightening money markets and falling house prices with the Dunfermline collapsing, then West Bromwich being forced into a debt for equity plan.
"Building societies had been off the radar," he says. "Dunfermline was quite seismic in the sector. Until then the sector had looked after its own."
But he insists Principality is in a much stronger position. Ninety-three percent of its loan book is funded by retail savers, it has never acquired anyone else's mortgage books and its capital position is the sector's strongest. Sidelines are personal lending, through its Nemo subsidiary which is up for sale, ventures such as Cardiff's Capital Shopping Park and the Peter Alan estate agency chain.
These days Griffiths often plays host to regulatory officials from London who want to look over the books. That's fine he says, but there is confusion between noises from the Treasury, the Bank of England and the Financial Services Authority. "I don't think there is one clear message that allows me to say here's what we do."
Griffiths grew up in a council house in Tenby, and is still animated by alternatives to mortgages. "I have always questioned whether central government's ambition for private home ownership is the right model.
"My parents never aspired to home ownership," he says, adding that home dwelling had become confused with investment.
On the private housing side, he believes prices are close to the bottom: "There is a pent-up demand now from first-time buyers. If credit is available, you will see a big resurgence in buyers coming back into the market."
So would he consider acquiring a weaker rival? He smiles: "I have always been a great believer in determining your own destiny. You can meet on the dancefloor, then the next day look and say: 'I didn't think she looked like that.' If we merged we would dilute our strength."
For now, keeping his members happy keeps the job interesting. More than 400 members turned out for the society's annual meeting, and it's them he has to answer to. "The real challenge is what membership means. Brand is important - people are looking for brands they can trust."
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