Metro Bank to raise £300m after upping lending by 55%

The announcement came at the same time as its H1 2018 results, which found that Metro increased its lending by 55% year-on-year to £12bn.

Metro Bank to raise £300m after upping lending by 55%

Metro Bank plans to raise £303m by issuing 8,851,304 new ordinary shares, representing 10% of the bank, on the London Stock Exchange.

The announcement came at the same time as its H1 2018 results, which found that Metro increased its lending by 55% year-on-year to £12bn.

Vernon Hill, chairman of the bank, said: “As a fast growing, profitable bank, the capital secured will allow us to continue to meet our growth targets and continue to revolutionise banking for Britain’s consumers and business alike.”

The bank recorded underlying pre-tax profit of £24.1m in the first half of 2018, a four-fold increase from the £6m recorded in the first half of 2017.

Craig Donaldson, chief executive at Metro Bank, said: “Almost eight years to the day we opened the doors to our first store and I’m delighted with the momentum demonstrated by the performance in the first half of 2018.”