Booming mortgage lending swings Co-op Bank back to profit February 24, 2022 A sharp rebound in mortgage lending amid a rampant UK housing market swung Co-operative Bank back to profit last year, the bank announced today. A near three-fold increase in net mortgage lending pushed profits at Co-op Bank to over £30m, up from a £103.7m loss in 2020. An ultra-low interest rate environment stoked demand in [...]
Lloyds Bank’s profits in the lift as lender’s mortgage book surges to £293bn February 24, 2022 Lloyds Banking Group has become the latest lending giant to post a bumper annual profit haul after releasing Covid loan loss provisions thanks to the UK’s economic recovery. The group has reported pre-tax profits surging to £6.9bn in 2021, up from £1.2bn the previous year after releasing Covid loan loss provisions thanks to the UK [...]
Co-operative Bank calls in top bankers to explore takeover bids February 23, 2022 The Co-Operative Bank has called in top investment bankers as it begins eyeing up potential acquisition targets and exploring a move to consolidate the UK’s mid-size banking market.
Barclays freezes ex-boss Staley’s bonus until Epstein dispute resolution February 23, 2022 Barclays has frozen all scheduled bonus payments to its former boss Jes Staley until a dispute between he and Britain’s financial regulators over the way he characterised his relationship with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein is resolved. The high street lender said today all bonus payments, which amount to around 70 per cent of Staley’s total [...]
More banker bonuses on the way this week February 21, 2022 Big banker bonuses are back on the table amid a robust rebound in lenders’ profits, annual results are expected to reveal this week. The City is expecting Barclays, which publishes finals on Wednesday, to register a £8.1bn profit haul, up sharply from £3.1bn in 2020 when the pandemic sent the banking sector spiralling. Investors will [...]
Australian property fintech PEXA gears up for government-backed UK launch February 15, 2022 Australian property fintech PEXA is set for a UK expansion with backing from the UK government as it looks to roll out a remortgage platform for UK mortgage lenders.
Higher interest rates and rebounding loan demand to boost UK banks February 10, 2022 A higher interest rate environment and a rebound in loan demand is set to boost Britain’s biggest lenders. UK banks’ net interest margins will widen on the Bank of England and the world’s biggest central banks launching a rate hike cycle this year to tame inflation, analysts are betting. Final quarter earnings for UK banks [...]
Borrowers ‘needn’t panic just yet’ after interest rates hike February 3, 2022 Real estate experts have said a rise in interest rates is “unlikely to dampen motivation to move” despite warnings that the news signals higher mortgage costs down the line. The Bank of England has hiked rates at successive meetings for the first time since 2004, with a majority of the Bank’s rate setters voting to [...]
Turnaround for Santander as bank takes home over €8bn in 2021 February 2, 2022 Spanish bank Santander took home over €8.1bn (£6.7bn) in 2021 profits, after enjoying its most profitable quarter for 12 years.
Even at seven times their income, single homebuyers are priced out of the market by £24,000 January 31, 2022 Despite many lenders relaxing their loan to income criteria, the average UK homebuyer is still priced out of the market unless purchasing with a partner. The current average loan to value, or the multiple of salary that a lender will loan to a buyer, has increased from 3.87 to 4.12 in the last ten years [...]