Together sees lending rise 28% to £1.8bn in 2018

The lender said it had produced consistent growth throughout the year with the final three months of October, November and December seeing an average £171m of loans completed each month.

Continuing that trend would put it on course to break £2bn of lending in a full year.

Together said it was seeing increased levels of originations in both commercial finance and personal finance products.

Its overall loan book also reached a new high of £3.25bn, which Together said was “driven by higher lending at conservative loan to values”.

It added that although the net interest margin remained “highly attractive” at 7.1 per cent although this was down from 8 per cent last year due to market competition, redemption of higher yielding legacy products and changes in product mix.

Over the final three months of 2018, Together delivered a pre-tax profit of £31.2m with an average loan to value of new originations unchanged at 58.9 per cent.

Widening distribution

Group chairman Mike McTighe said he was pleased with the results, noting the lender had added more networks and clubs to its distribution, launching bridging products via these channels, and added additional breadth and maturity to its funding.

Commercial finance CEO Marc Goldberg (pictured) said: “We are very proud to be announcing this strong set of results for the quarter, as we lent more to our personal and commercial customers and our loan book reached a new high of £3.25bn.

“Accomplishing these results would not be possible without the hard work and dedication of our 750 colleagues who continue to deliver positive outcomes and great service to our customers.

“The future is very exciting for everyone at Together and we look forward to continuing to grow the business and helping more individuals, families and businesses to access the finances they need.”