Consultancy KPMG’s annual study into the building society sector has shown assets in the sector growing by over 12% to almost £200bn for 2002/2003. Nationwide comprises over 40% of the sector’s assets, with Kent Reliance growing the quickest, recording a rise of over 50% in its assets. The average margin for the top 19 societies was 1.15%, down from 1.22% last year.