Bluestone lending up 18 per cent to £295m

The figure was an 18 per cent increase on the £250m it completed in the year to the end of June 2019, and also takes into account the worst of the Covid-19 lockdown last year.

Bluestone added that the six months from July to December saw its applications increase by 50 per cent compared to the same period in 2019.

Overall the lender said it had delivered a £2.85m profit for the financial year – its first profit since launching into the broker market in 2016.

It added that it was continuing to see “unprecedented demand from borrowers” and that it expected this trend to continue over the long-term given the number of borrowers emerging from the Covid-19 crisis with more complex borrowing needs.

Managing director Steve Seal said: “Today’s figures are the result of the continued dedication of the Bluestone team, our funders and our intermediary partners.

“Despite the challenges presented by the Covid-19 trading environment, we have worked hard to ensure that our service and underwriting teams, as well as our established broker network, have been equipped to support both existing and new customers during this period.”

In its previous set of results Bluestone reported net losses of £2.42m which was a reduction of 37 per cent on the losses reported the year before.