House price growth accelerates ahead of potential interest rate cut August 1, 2024 UK house price growth has accelerated in the past month as buyer confidence picked up and mortgage rates fell ahead of a potential interest rate cut by the Bank of England. UK house prices rose by 0.3 per cent month on month in July, Nationwide reported in their monthly house price index. The annual growth [...]
Barclays announces £750m buyback after beating expectations August 1, 2024 Barclays joined other lenders in announcing sizeable returns to shareholders after performing ahead of expectations in the second quarter. In the three months to June, Barclays reported a pretax profit of £1.9bn, more or less unchanged on last year but comfortably ahead of the £1.6bn expected by analysts. The lender’s investment bank and its wealth [...]
Paragon Bank confirms targets with business running ‘ahead of expectations’ July 30, 2024 FTSE 250-listed Paragon Bank said new business levels were running “ahead of expectations” as the lender remained on track for its full year targets. Paragon, based in Solihull in the West Midlands, is a major provider of loans to professional landlords with at least four properties. It also lends to medium-sized housebuilders seeking loans up to £35m. [...]
Mortgage market treads water before of Bank of England interest rate decision July 29, 2024 Bank of England data showed that the number of mortgage approvals, which indicate future borrowing, remained broadly steady in June at just under 60,000.
Natwest shares rise after strong results and deal for part of Metro Bank’s mortgage book July 26, 2024 Natwest became the latest bank to report a fading boost from higher interest rates as it announced the acquisition of part of Metro Bank's mortgage book.
Revolut’s long wait for a banking licence finally comes to an end July 25, 2024 After more than three years, Revolut’s wait for a banking licence is finally over after it received authorisation from the banking watchdog.
Lloyds Bank profit slides as interest rate boom slows July 25, 2024 Lloyds Banking Group recorded a slide in profit in the first half of the year after a surge in costs and a slowdown in the amount of cash it was making on the back of interest rates. The group – which owns Lloyds Bank, Halifax, Bank of Scotland and Scottish Widows – reported a pretax [...]
Yorkshire Building Society sees profit fall as rate tailwind eases July 25, 2024 Profit fell at Yorkshire Building Society as margins in the mortgage market were compressed by the plateau in interest rates. In the first six months of the year, the building society’s pretax profit fell to £158.1m from £180.6m in the same period last year. The fall in profit was largely due to lower net interest [...]
Profit drops at Santander UK but boss Regnier hopes for brighter second half July 24, 2024 Santander UK reported a sharp drop in profit in the first half of the year but said there were signs of growing tailwinds for the rest of 2024. The Spanish bank’s UK arm reported pretax profit of £804m in the first six months of the year, down from £1.2bn in the same period last year. [...]
Nationwide’s £2.9bn swoop on Virgin Money gets go-ahead from CMA July 19, 2024 A tie-up between Nationwide and Virgin Money has got the greenlight from the competition watchdog today, paving the way for the £2.9bn deal to close in the final quarter of this year.