LendInvest benefits from property boom with profits surging
LendInvest, the tech driven asset manager for property finance in the UK, announced a revenue growth of 28 per cent this morning of £72.4m, compared to the same period last year.
The non-bank mortgage lender’s gross profit also increased by 51 per cent to £26.5m (30 Sep 2020: £17.6m) reflecting higher fees and interest income generated as a result of the increase in platform assets under management (AuM).
Platform AuM increased 32 per cent to £1.8bn (30 Sep 2020: £1.4bn), driven by a 66 per cent increase in Buy-to-Let assets since the prior interim period.
LendInvest’s half year results come after the company successfully joined the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange in July 2021, raising £40m to invest in the Group’s property finance product roadmap and the continued development of its technology.
Funds under management increased 40 per cent to £2.9bn (30 Sep 2020: £2.1bn) as the Group secured a £725m separate account agreement with J.P. Morgan and completed its third residential mortgage-backed securitisation of £280m BTL loans in June 2021.
On the results, Rod Lockhart, chief exec of LendInvest, said: “With the mortgage process largely unchanged since the nineteenth century, LendInvest continues to have a unique opportunity to lead the digital transformation of one of the last verticals of financial services yet to be disrupted by technology. While we remain mindful of the competitive landscape and uncertain economic environment, we are very excited about the opportunities ahead.”
The figures were above company expectations, and despite macroeconomic uncertainties over consumer confidence and interest rates looking into 2022, LendInvest expects housing market conditions to remain favourable for the company.
The company statement read: “Our strong performance in the first half supports our ongoing confidence in meeting expectations for the full year. We expect profits to be skewed towards the first half of the year due to the £100m upsize of the J.P. Morgan Separate Account which brought forward ~£1.9m of profit from the second half. BTL originations are expected to continue to be strong following increased demand for our green EPiC range, offsetting slower originations in our short term lending products as the property development market adjusts to the impact of Covid on material and labour costs.”
Shares closed at 195.85p yesterday evening.