Lloyds ups lending by 13pc

The bank lent £40bn, of which £11.9bn was to first-time buyers.

António Horta-Osório, Lloyds Bank’s group chief executive, said: "2014 was a year of continued delivery for the group, with the achievement of the key objectives set out in our 2011 strategic plan resulting in a significant transformation of the business and improvement in performance.

“Strategically, we are now a low risk bank, with a strong balance sheet and funding position and industry cost leadership, all of which provide competitive differentiation."

The bank’s pre-tax profits stood at £1.76bn in 2014, up from £415m in 2013.

One in five UK mortgage loans were issued by Lloyds, while the lender was the largest participant in the Help to Buy mortgage guarantee scheme after lending £1.9bn through the scheme