(28 April 2016 – United Kingdom) Santander UK’s profits increased by 13 percent to £532 million (A$1.02 billion) for the first three months of 2016.
The bank has said increased mortgage loans and business lending were biggest drivers of its Q1 results.
Lending to businesses increased by £1.1 billion to £27.5 billion.
The bank gave out £7.1bn of mortgages in the three-month period and gained an extra 131,000 customers, indicating its plan to take on the big four high street banks is working.
Despite the sharp increases in mortgage and business lending, revenue did not increase compared with the same period in 2015, stagnating at around £1.16 billion.
In a statement, the bank’s chief executive Nathan Bostock warned of the effects of the upcoming “Brexit” vote, saying it may impact both economic, and the bank’s growth prospects.
“We expect the improving trend in UK lending growth seen in 2015 to continue, but are conscious of prevailing market volatility from macro-economic and geopolitical factors, uncertain prospects for policy interest rates, and the upcoming UK referendum on EU membership,” he said.