The bank has reported pre-tax losses of £103.7m for 2020 as net residential lending rose by 5%
Co-op Bank has reported pre-tax losses of £103.7m for 2020 in its most recent set of results as net residential lending rose by 5%.
This sees the Bank’s losses reduced by nearly £50m, down from £152.1m in 2019, even as it took a hit of £22m from pandemic related defaults.
Nick Slape, chief executive officer of Co-op Bank, said the Bank was set for “for a return to profitability in the near future” and praised the mortgage business as being crucial to its improvement.
He said: The performance in mortgages and the continued growth of our SME franchise has been particularly pleasing, with net residential lending up 5% at improved margins and our SME business going from strength to strength.
The transformation of our SME banking business has attracted new customers, meaning we now support over 90,000 small businesses, many of whom are charities, non-profit organisations and co-operatives, Slape said. We continue to improve the service we offer SME customers, delivering our Banking Competition Remedies (BCR) investment plan, with new credit card and savings products, and more to come in 2021, including a new mobile app and same day on-boarding for new customers.
He said that as we face into continued difficult times for many people and businesses, we remain committed to providing the support required as well as continuing to make a positive impact on the environment and the world around us. This matters now more than ever and we are proud of our record as a beyond carbon neutral bank since 2007, saying no to financing fossil fuels and companies with a poor environmental impact, together with the values and ethics of the co-operative movement that sit at our heart.
