Virgin Money boss David Duffy said he remains cautious despite the bank returning to profit (Virgin Money / PA)
In the three months to the end of 2020, customer deposits rose 0.9% to £68.1 billion as customers spent less and businesses maintained healthy balance sheets to get through the pandemic.
Mortgages reduced 0.2% to £58.2 billion and personal lending fell 2% to £5.1 billion compared to the previous quarter.
Business lending rose slightly by 0.1% to £8.9 billion, although the Government-backed lending schemes remained popular as the second national lockdown in England saw businesses take on more debt to see through the winter.
Bounceback loans increased by 14% and bigger Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) and Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CLBILS) facilities rose 19%, the bank added.
By BFN News | 07:34 AM | Tuesday 02 February, 2021 Banking group Virgin Money UK said it returned to profit in the first quarter, without giving a specific number, and reiterated its full-year margin guidance.
Customer lending at the end of December was £72.5 billion, down 0.3% from the end of September.
Customer deposits rose 0.9% to £67.5 million, while credit provisions fell to £735 million, down from £726 million.
A first-quarter impairment charge of £18 million equated to a net cost of risk of 10 basis points, which the company said reflected cautious and unchanged economic assumptions. The group has not yet seen any material changes in overall portfolio asset quality, nor been required to make any significant COVID-related specific provisions, Virgin Money UK said.
2 February 2021 | 11:57am
StockMarketWire.com - By midday the FTSE 100 was steady and more or less holding on to its earlier gains, up 0.4% to 6,492.32.
The advance for the index lagged that seen in European markets thanks to strength in sterling and weakness in index heavyweight BP.
Oil major BP fell 3.3% to 258.4p after it booked a 96% drop in fourth-quarter profit as the pandemic sapped demand for oil and gas.
BP s underlying replacement-cost profit, a measure closely watched by analysts, slumped to £115 million, down from £2.57 billion year-on-year. Full-year losses amounted to an eye-watering £5.69 billion.
Power utility SSE was flat at £15.12, having stuck to its full-year earnings guidance after a rise in gas-fired production offset lower generation from renewable sources.
Virgin Money increases PPI provisions by £49m
Virgin Money has revealed its final PPI payments in its latest results (Rui Vieira / PA)
Virgin Money has added a further charge of £49 million to the cost of compensation over the PPI scandal following a higher level of internal reviews into complaints leading to payouts.
The bank added it finished the final processing of all complaints by January 25, with a total of 740,000 received and a processing cost of £3.1 billion.
It comes as the high street lender revealed cautious customers were avoiding taking out personal loans and instead turning to depositing their cash.
Virgin Money boss David Duffy said he remains cautious despite the bank returning to profit (Virgin Money / PA)
US Market Open: Biden won’t settle for stimulus that ‘fails to meet the moment’
Joshua Warner February 2, 2021 12:21 PM
US markets are expected to open sharply higher today as president Joe Biden and the Democrats push ahead with plans to unleash a $1.9 trillion stimulus package despite calls from Republicans that it is too costly. Share:
US investors are preparing for earnings from Amazon and Alphabet after the closing bell today.
European markets are largely trading higher today, with the FTSE 100 lagging behind and trading flat.
Eurozone GDP reading beats expectations, but markets are bracing for a tougher period in Q1 2021.