Coventry Building Society has reported gross mortgage lending of £3.5bn for the six months to 30 June, a decline from the £4.1bn it reported last year.
Its mortgage balance increased by £800m to £43bn, a growth of two per cent.
This was lower than the 3.4 per cent growth it reported in the first six months of 2019 where net lending grew by £1.3bn.
The mutual’s profit before tax stood at £22m, down from £75m for the same period last year. It said this was reduced because additional provisions of £39m for potential future losses to buffer lower net interest income.
Net interest income for H1 was £178m, compared to £201m last year. This was a result of the base rate being cut to its historical low in March before the mutual made the decision to cut its savings rates.
Steve Hughes, chief executive at Coventry Building Society, said: “I joined the society on the 20 April with Covid-19 impacting all parts of the society and affecting our members, intermediaries, colleagues and the communities in which we operate. It has dominated the first half of the year.
“We responded quickly to keep members and colleagues safe and stayed open for business. I am very proud of the service we’ve maintained for our borrowers and intermediaries in these very challenging times and proud also that we’ve continued to grow our mortgages and outperform the market in doing so.”
Shekina is the deputy editor at Mortgage Solutions and commercial editor at Mortgage Solutions and Specialist Lending Solutions. She has nearly eight years of experience in the B2B publishing market, having previously covered the hospitality, retail, pet, accounting and jewellery sectors.
Shekina has worked for Mortgage Solutions and Specialist Lending Solutions for almost five years. Here, she covers the market’s breaking news stories, engages with professionals in the sector, and oversees any commercially agreed content in partnership with mortgage-related companies.
This includes presenting webinars and hosting roundtable discussions on developing themes in the mortgage sector.
She is an NCTJ-trained journalist and was nominated for the Headline Money Awards Mortgage Journalist of the Year in 2021.
In her spare time, Shekina likes to read, travel, listen to music and socialise with friends.
She currently reports on current events in the mortgage market and liaises with financial clients to produce sponsored content.
Follow her on Twitter at @ShekinaMS
