Co-op stops offering accounts to bankrupts The Co-operative Bank will no longer offer accounts to recent bankrupts, after claiming that it had been burdened with a disproportionate share of the market. Co-op's decision means that undischarged bankrupts - those who have been declared bankrupt in the last year - can only open a basic bank account with Barclays. John Hughes, managing director of retail banking at The Co-operative Bank, blamed industry failures for the account closure. "Across the industry there has long been an unlevel playing field in the provision of basic bank accounts, with our bank doing far more than most," he said. Unfortunately it has now come to the stage where our disproportionate market share of the basic bank account market has continued to grow significantly, and regretfully, we now need to take steps to address this. Basic accounts allow customers a place to pay in wages and use direct debits, but does not offer any form of credit such as an overdraft. Although there are 20 basic accounts on the market, only Co-op and Barclays made these available to individuals who had recently been declared bankrupt. Banks who offer accounts to bankrupt customers can face serious problems, explained the British Bankers" Association, as creditors can pose legal claims to the money held in accounts, creating an administrative burden for banks. Individual insolvencies in England and Wales fell to a four-year low in the second quarter of 2012, but accountants say the figures are being held down by historic low interest rates. If borrowing rates rise and debts become more expensive the number of personal and corporate bankruptcies is expected to rise rapidly.