The Bank, which was established in 1998 and entered the UK mortgage market in 1999 with the launch of its flexible mortgage, Freestyle, made a profit of £4.6m for the year ending 15 November 2003. Mortgages under management grew from £7.2bn to £8.7bn and gross mortgage lending rose from £3.1bn to £3.4bn.
Anne Gunther, chief executive of Standard Life Bank, said:
“2003 was a great year for Standard Life Bank. We achieved profit for the first time and one year ahead of plan. Our ability to provide customers with great products, value for money and excellent service has proved advantageous in the marketplace. Freestyle, our flexible mortgage, has appealed to people who want to be smart with their money. They like the fact they can use their mortgage to sort out all their financial planning needs.
“In 2003 Standard Life Bank moved beyond the start-up phase and we are now a mature, successful business, able to stand on our own two feet. Our debut securitisation programme of £2.5 billion was extremely well received and the Bank now has access to all the mainstream sources of mortgage funding. This makes us well placed for future growth.
“We continue with the implementation of our plans to grow the Bank on all fronts. It is paramount that we continue to build on our success by providing value to our customers through innovative, flexible products and excellent service. In particular I expect to see a greater emphasis on customer loyalty in our industry. I believe customer loyalty begins with lender loyalty: Standard Life Bank will continue to innovate with that in mind. “
Other trends over the past year include business quality, which continues to remain very high. Mortgage arrears (three or more payments down) stood at 0.08 per cent, less than 10 per cent* of the industry average. In a difficult climate our retail savings balance fell slightly to £4.6 billion. The Bank now serves almost 420,000 customers across its savings and mortgage business.
Sir Brian Stewart, chairman of Standard Life, said:
“These impressive results show that Standard Life Bank has grown-up into a profitable business. Five years from start-up, the Bank has achieved profitability, ahead of schedule. The Bank is very much at the heart of the growth and development of the Group going forward and I congratulate everyone at the Bank for an impressive performance over the past year.”
