Lender reveals record loan book of £3.7bn and improved profits

Mike McTighe

Cheadle finance company Together has announced record lending growth, with its loan book hitting a new high of £3.7bn, an impressive 24% improvement.

Reporting its annual results, the organisation said the number of new loans and mortgages were up 19.4% to £2bn, while profit before tax stood at £130.3m – a 7.1% increase on the previous year.

The group, which has been trading for 45 years, generated cash receipts of £1.6bn in the year to June 30, according to its latest full-year results.

This year’s growth came as the business increased the scale and diversity of its funding by raising and re-financing more than £2bn over the past 12 months to support its future growth.

Chairman Mike McTighe said: “Together has delivered another solid performance during the year, with strong lending volumes at low loan-to-values (LTVs) driving continued growth in the loan book and increased profitability and cash generation.

“While the UK’s economic outlook remains uncertain with lead indicators continuing to be mixed and the Brexit deadline approaching, we are continuing to see strong demand from customers.”

Marc Goldberg, commercial finance chief executive, said the launch of the group’s Together + platform for key specialist brokers and its new corporate team – set up to deliver commercial loans of £1m-plus – were particular highlights.

He said: “We are proud to report another great set of results for Together as we again delivered record lending during the year.

“Our stable year-on-year growth would not be possible without the hard work and dedication of all of our colleagues, who remain focused on delivering positive end-to-end journeys for our customers and intermediaries.”

Pete Ball, personal finance chief executive, said this year’s growth was a great testament to the success of Together’s commitment to developing the group’s offering and widening distribution through more specialist brokers, mortgage networks and clubs.

He said: “Looking ahead, we will increasingly focus on innovation through transforming and automating our systems to deliver positive customer outcomes. We remain committed to proactively engaging with customers to enhance our service offering and product range, and to investing in our colleagues, whom I wish to thank for their ongoing commitment and hard work.”

Among the highlights during the financial period was continued growth in the loan book and profitability driven by strong lending volumes. Average monthly loans were up 19.4% to £165.2m, compared with £138.3m last year.

Interest receivable and similar income was up 17.4% at £343.1m, driven by interest earned on the growing loan book.

The net interest margin remains highly attractive at 6.9%, compared with 7.5% last year, despite competitive market conditions, redemption of higher yielding legacy products, higher gearing and product mix changes.

EBITDA was up 14.7% to £251.4m and the group remains highly cash generative, with receipts up 25.7% to £1.6bn.

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