Co-op bank reports ‘resilient’ performance in first few months of 2021 April 28, 2021 Co-op Bank reported a small underlying profit in the first three months of 2021 of £2.6m, with statutory profit before tax of £7.2m. CEO Nick Slape said the bank had delivered a “resilient” three-month performance, that should position it well to deliver overall profit in 2021. “We have delivered a resilient performance by maintaining our [...]
Metro Bank signals lending progress after slow start to the year April 28, 2021 Metro Bank said it is starting to see growth in consumer lending again, after a lockdown-led sluggish start to the year. Metro Bank saw a 17 per cent plunge in lending for the first quarter, with the company’s total net loans falling to £12.05bn for the first three months of 2020, versus £14.51bn a year earlier. [...]
HSBC profits surge to $5.8bn on Covid-19 recovery hopes April 27, 2021 Banking giant HSBC this morning announced a surging pre-tax profit of $5.78bn (£4.16bn) for the first quarter, up from $3.21bn a year ago and well above an average analyst forecast of $3.35bn. Revenue, however, fell five per cent to $13bn in the three months to 30 March as low interest rates in its main markets [...]
Sunday Sitdown: ‘Skittish’ banks need to up their game, says CEO of Ezbob April 25, 2021 Following a nightmare year that was hugely disrupted by the pandemic and three subsequent lockdowns, the City is slowly switching into recovery mode as the economy starts to re-open and many sectors are coming back to life. To discuss the way back up, City A.M. sits down with Tomer Guriel, chief executive of Marble Arch-based [...]
Boost for first-time buyers as more ultra-low deposit mortgages hit the market April 24, 2021 In a further boost to first-time buyers, more lenders are bringing 5 per cent deposit mortgages onto the market. New deals announced by Metro Bank and Cambridge Building Society are not part of a new government-backed mortgage guarantee scheme which was launched this week to increase the availability of 5 per cent deposit loans. Major [...]
One in five aspiring first-time buyers lives with family or friends to save cash April 22, 2021 More than a fifth of aspiring first-time buyers have moved in with family or friends since the coronavirus crisis started, according to research published this morning. Some 22 per cent of people hoping to buy their first home in the next two years have moved in with parents, in-laws or friends since March 2020, Halifax [...]
UK house prices rise at fastest rate since 2014 April 21, 2021 UK house prices soared in February at the highest growth rate recorded in more than six years – but London lagged behind the rest of the country. Average house prices across the UK increased 8.6 per cent in the year to February, up from eight per cent in January. This is the highest house price [...]
Nationwide to lend first-time buyers five times their income on long-term mortgage April 20, 2021 First-time buyers with deposits as low as 10 per cent will be able to borrow five and a half times their income when taking out a longer-term mortgage, the UK’s biggest building society said this morning. Nationwide Building Society said that under its “helping hand” initiative, first-time buyers across the UK will have the option [...]
Barclaycard defends decision to cut customers’ credit limits by 95 per cent April 20, 2021 Barclaycard has defended cutting some customers’ credit limits after a backlash from people complaining they had been reduced by over 95 per cent. Some customers complained that their limits had been significantly reduced despite having never missed a payment. It was pointed out that Barclaycard had made the reductions at a time when some people [...]
UK banks launch new low-deposit mortgage scheme April 19, 2021 High street banks will today begin offering mortgages with a deposit of just five per cent under a new government-backed scheme. The scheme, first announced in the Budget, is designed to make home ownership more affordable for first-time buyers. Borrowers will be able to secure a mortgage with just a five per cent deposit on [...]