Profit increase, but drop in lending for Nationwide

Following its merger with Portman Building Society, Nationwide, in its half-year results, indicated a rise of 29 per cent in its underlying profits before tax, to £394.4 million.

However, following the ‘credit crunch’ affecting the market, Nationwide admitted that it had reined in its mortgage offerings, with prime net lending for the lender at £3.3 billion, down from the September 2006 findings of £5.6 billion. Nationwide also confirmed that the proportion of mortgages in arrears on its books was at 0.35 per cent for the group, compared to an industry average of 1.06 per cent.

Commenting on the results, Graham Beale, chief executive at Nationwide, said: “This has been an exceptional and challenging six months, a period in which we have merged with Portman Building Society and the industry has seen unprecedented market conditions arising from the ‘credit crunch’.”

The statement also revealed that prime mortgage lending for the organisation dropped to £11.9 billion, but Beale indicated that this was as a result of the turbulent market conditions and had been a prudent decision by the lender.

He added: “We deliberately focus on quality of lending rather than pursuing market share and we intend to maintain this prudent approach.

“We have no direct exposure to US non-conforming lending resulting in an overall balance sheet of the highest quality.”

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