Spanish-owned Santander has faced questions about its financial safety this week as the euro crisis deepened, causing rating agency Moody’s to downgrade 16 Spanish banks, including Santander UK.

Another big swing in share prices shows the uncertainty is far from over, with some fearing Spain could go the way of Ireland

Savers are now on the home stretch with the 5 April end of tax year deadline less than a fortnight away. After that date this year's tax-free individual savings account (ISA) allowance is lost for good.

Choosing the right home loan isn't always a straightforward process. We all have different circumstances so it's never going be a case of one type of mortgage fits all. Most of us who opt for a discounted or fixed-rate mortgage will naturally focus on the interest rate and fee as we look to keep the upfront costs and monthly repayments to a minimum.

Where's the cheapest place to get cash?

Is the tide starting to turn in the mortgage market? You've probably already heard the outcry following the decision by Halifax, Clydesdale Bank, Yorkshire Bank and Bank of Ireland to increase the standard variable rate on their mortgages. It's too early to say if this is just the tip of the iceberg with other lenders soon to follow suit, but even though base rate remains at 0.5 per cent, where it has held fast for three years, it does seem that the ultra-low mortgage era that many have been enjoying may be coming to an end.

Ana Botin, the chief executive of Santander UK, was paid £4.1m last year, despite the bank's profits plunging by 40 per cent after it was hit by a £500m charge for mis-selling payment protection insurance (PPI).

It's become common practice for banks to offer financial incentives as they desperately try to encourage customers to join them and kick their current provider in to touch. Up to now, switching initiatives have fallen into a number of categories. These include upfront cash hand outs, short-term promotional credit interest rates, limited-interest free overdrafts or access to exclusive products in a bid to win new current accounts.

Barclays was the most complained-about bank in the last six months of 2011, according to the financial ombudsman, with nearly 12,000 cases brought by consumers.

The steady stream of new ISA accounts just keeps coming, and there have been a couple of particularly attractive products launched this week. Nottingham Building Society has taken over the top spot in the two-year fixed-rate ISA best buys with a new account paying 3.65 per cent tax-free with the rate fixed until 31 March 2014.

The City watchdog has fined Santander UK £1.5m for failing to make it clear to investors who bought its structured investment products whether they were covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.

The City watchdog has fined Santander UK £1.5m for failing to make it clear to investors who bought its structured investment products whether they were covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.

Santander has been fined £1.5 million for failing to make clear to customers that some of its products had only limited cover under a compensation scheme.