In effort to combat the rising level of consumer debt, high street banks may turn to fee-based products, according to one institution.

HSBC today announced strong half year results with pre-tax profits of £6.7 billion beating all expectations.

Credit card charges and transparency have both improved, according to HSBC chief executive Dyfrid John, but more needs to be done to combat the high level of credit and debt.

An increase in interest rates would be a strong penalty for borrowers and another way forward could be fee - based banking provision, the bank chief explained.

"There is pretty serious personal indebtedness in the UK at the moment. The only way we can move away from it is by sharing positive credit information," said Mr John.

"Fee-based products – that is where the future will lie. The issue here is one of transparency and an open relationship. There are a significant proportion of customers choosing [fee-based accounts]."

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