Handelsbanken’s Q1 results show steady growth
Handelsbanken, the local relationship bank with over 200 branches across the UK, has today announced its Q1 results showing steady growth as it builds a bank for the future, following its launch as a fully-licensed UK bank in December last year.
As the Bank invests in building strong and stable foundations for future growth, its emphasis on customer satisfaction, prudent banking and cost efficiency continued to help its branches deliver consistent quarterly increases in its business volumes.
Summary of the Q1 2019 figures compared to Q1 2018:
– · UK income increased by 7% to £142.3m
– · UK operating profit is up 8% to £54.6m for the quarter, excluding a one-off positive effect in 2018 related to a change in the pension plan (including the one-off positive effect.
– UK operating profit was down by 13%
– · UK lending up 7% to £21.1bn: household lending (largely mortgages) up 4% to £6.7bn, corporate lending up 9% to £14.4bn
– · UK deposits up 11% to £14.6bn: household deposits up 7% to £4.6bn, corporate deposits up 13% to £10.0bn
Mikael Sorensen, UK CEO, says: “Having converted our UK operations to a subsidiary, and gained our UK banking licence last December, our priority has been to build strong and stable foundations for long term, sustainable growth.
“Strengthening our foundations for future growth allows us to pave a steady path, as we continue to focus on what we are good at: consistently meeting the ongoing demand we see for our distinctive model, delivered through the long term, personal relationships we form with our customers.
“As we build a bank for the future, it is encouraging to see our quarterly results confirm the health and soundness of our approach.
“This is supported by the most recent results of the Competition and Markets Authority’s independent service quality survey for business banking, in which we came top in four out of five of the categories identified for the second time.”
Handelsbanken customers enjoy direct access to experienced branch staff who are empowered to make decisions locally and deliver high levels of customer satisfaction, without the presence of product or sales targets.
In October last year, Handelsbanken was rated as having the most satisfied and loyal customers of all British banks for the tenth year in a row, according to an independent survey of British banking customers run by EPSI Rating.
Handelsbanken plc, the official name of Handelsbanken’s UK subsidiary, has been assigned a long term credit rating of AA with a stable outlook by international credit ratings agency, Fitch; and a long term credit rating of AA- by Standard & Poor’s. The ratings are the same as those given for the subsidiary’s Swedish parent, Svenska Handelsbanken AB (publ) and confirm the Bank’s strength, stability and creditworthiness.
