Metro Bank heads closer to profit, as chief exec shrugs off Brexit fears
Metro Bank revealed it was closer to moving out of the red today, as its chief executive waved away any Brexit woes.
The figures
The challenger bank reported an underlying loss after tax of £4.1m for its quarter to June, a 45 per cent shift towards the black on the £7.6m loss it reported last year, and a 48 per cent improvement on the £7.9m loss reported in the bank's first quarter.
Meanwhile, Metro Bank also reported total revenue of £46.3m, an increase of 63 per cent compared with £28.4m the year before and an increase of 23 per cent compared with £37.8m in the quarter before.
Shares in the bank, which listed earlier this year, are trading up 4.2 per cent at 2,010p at time of writing.
[charts-share-price id="399"]
Why it's important
The markets can be a cruel mistress sometimes. Shares in many banks around the world plunged when the Brexit result was announced last month, but the drop was particularly sharp among the challenger banks.
A report from the Bank of England, which warned challengers were less shielded from any downturn in the commercial property sector, did little to calm nervous investors, especially since many property funds had shut their doors shortly before the publication's release.
However, the challengers have come back fighting. A group of them, including Metro Bank, recently wrote to the influential Treasury select committee, urging the MPs to see Brexit as an opportunity to cut some of the red tape that had hampered competition in the industry.
What Metro Bank said
"Metro Bank is in a strong position to deal with any post European referendum uncertainty," said Craig Donaldson, chief executive at Metro Bank.
Donaldson later told City A.M. that he considered today's results to be "a huge mile towards profitability", adding "the direction of travel is very much set which is why we confidentially stay by the guidance we gave that we go into profit on a month-by-month basis later this year."
Vernon Hill, chairman and founder at Metro Bank, commented:
As we celebrate our sixth anniversary, we would like to thank all our customers, colleagues and investors who have supported us in our mission to develop Metro Bank into a major banking force in the UK. We look forward to creating even more fans over the years ahead.
In short
No profits this quarter but perhaps they are just around the corner?