The Co-operative Bank has announced plans to distribute £90m to its investors, following a surge in lending during the third quarter. This comes ahead of a £780m merger with Coventry Building Society.
The Manchester-headquartered bank reported on Tuesday that its net mortgage balances increased by two per cent between July and September, compared to the same period last year, as reported by .
Additionally, its net lending to small and medium-sized businesses saw a significant 16 per cent rise as the 海角视频 economy began to show signs of recovery.
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As the Co-op Bank gears up to return to mutual ownership in Q1 2025, this trading update arrives. The acquisition of the 152 year old lender by Coventry, agreed upon in May, came after Nationwide's £2.9bn purchase of Virgin Money, which was finalised at the beginning of October.
During the three months, Co-op Bank's customer deposits grew by one per cent. Its board has approved an interim dividend of 0.99p per Class A share to reward investors.
The bank stated that the dividend, due to be paid on 28 November, would return £90m to shareholders. Nick Slape, Co-op Bank’s CEO, expressed gratitude towards the bank's shareholders for their "patient support during the bank's turnaround" and attributed the dividend to "following the continued profitability and successful normalisation of capital requirements."
The bank also highlighted that net switching away from its current account offering was around 70 per cent lower than a year earlier. It added that it was on track to end 2024 with a net positive switch position "for the first time in several years following our proposition success".
"The bank is in a strong position, maintaining a resilient, low risk balance sheet and sustained credit quality," added Slape.