Shawbrook’s loan book rises to £11.2bn in Q1

The lender said this growth was driven by loan origination across its real estate and SME markets. 

This was also higher than the £9.1bn loan book it generated during the same period last year. 

It said its funding position was “strong”, pointing to the nine per cent growth of its retail deposit book to £11.2bn over the quarter. Shawbrook said this was supported by “healthy levels of liquidity” as it closed the period with a liquidity coverage ratio of 263.7 per cent, down from 321.3 per cent in Q4 2022. 

The liquidity coverage ratio refers to the proportion of highly liquid assets that financial institutions hold to maintain their ongoing short-term obligations. 

It said it was continuing to monitor the economic climate but noted that there were no signs of “widespread credit stress” across its loan book. As of Q1, its arrears rate was flat on a quarterly basis at 1.9 per cent. 

Marcelino Castrillo, chief executive of Shawbrook, said: “The excellent performance we delivered during 2022 extended into the first quarter of 2023, as we continued to build on our established track record of sustainable growth and strong profitability, underpinned by proven scalability, a diversified portfolio and robust risk management.  

“While growing our loan book, we have maintained disciplined underwriting standards, conscious of the increasing affordability pressures on parts of the economy.” 

He added: “While the macroeconomic backdrop continues to show signs of volatility, the proven flexibility of our business model combined with our strong capital and liquidity base means we can adapt quickly to challenges and opportunities as they may present themselves while delivering on our purpose to power up ingenuity, to create opportunity every day.”