Latest News

Metro Bank hits record growth in corporate and commercial lending


By Dan McGrath

Metro Bank has published 67% growth in new corporate, commercial and SME lending in 2025, which is a record for the high street bank.

In this period, the bank also returned to profit, recovering from a loss of £14m in the 2024 financial year to a profit of £98.1m


Story 2

Intermediary confidence softens slightly in Q4 – IMLA

Intermediary confidence softened in the final quarter of 2025, the Intermediary Mortgage Lenders Association (IMLA) has revealed

Story 3

Record flows drive Quilter’s AUMA to £141bn

Quilter’s assets under management and administration (AUMA) grew by 18% year-on-year to £141.2bn in 2025, driven by an increase in net inflows and positive market performance

Story 4

8.6 million savings accounts exposed to tax

Over 8.6 million adult non-ISA savings accounts across the UK are generating enough annual interest to breach personal savings allowance (PSA) thresholds, new research by Paragon Bank has indicated

Mortgage lending rises 16% in 2025 – UK Finance

The number of mortgages for house purchase grew by 16.3% in 2025 to reach 720,000 loans, the highest number since the pandemic, figures from UK Finance have indicated

One in five landlords now operate through a limited company

Over one in five landlords (21%) now operate at least part of their portfolio through a limited company, according to analysis by Pegasus Insight
Nationwide doubles households who can benefit from 0% green home borrowing

Nationwide has doubled the number of households who can benefit from its 0% green additional borrowing products, as part of its efforts to support energy-efficient homeownership

Retirement advice approaches evolving amid regulatory and policy changes

Financial advisers in the UK are evolving their retirement advice approaches to better navigate client planning needs amid regulatory and policy changes, a report from BNY Investments and NextWealth has shown

View More News

Categories

IHT receipts remain on track for record year

Inheritance tax (IHT) receipts totalled £7.1bn between April last year and January, with the latest figure signalling another record haul, HMRC has revealed

Average FTB relief claimant paid over £4k in stamp duty last year

The average stamp duty charge paid by a first-time buyer relief claimant was £4,073 among those who had liable transactions in 2024/25, new Freedom of Information (FOI) data has shown

New IHT rules risk ‘dry’ tax bills for families, law firm warns

The new rules around inheritance tax (IHT) risk “dry” tax bills and future disputes for farmers and private business owners, Irwin Mitchell has warned

HoL calls for changes to IHT on pensions proposals amid ‘significant’ risks to PRs

The House of Lords (HoL) Economic Affairs Finance Bill Sub-Committee has urged the Government to make changes to its proposals bringing pensions into the scope of inheritance tax (IHT), particularly in relation to personal representatives (PR)

FCA outlines proposals to close gaps in borrowers’ credit files

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has set out new proposals to give lenders access to more comprehensive information to support lending decisions by closing gaps in borrowers’ credit files and ensuring these more accurately reflect people’s financial circumstances. The regulator said it was consulting on designating credit reference agencies (CRAs)

Landlords still unsure of how RRA changes will work in practice

Almost three quarters (73%) of landlords are still unsure about aspects of the Renters’ Rights Act (RRA), Paragon Bank research has found

FCA pension transfer proposals ‘anti-consumer and anti-competitive’ - AJ Bell

The Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) proposed reforms to non-advised pension transfers have been branded as "anti-consumer and anti-competitive” by AJ Bell, which warned they risk undermining years of progress on improving transfer times

Market Financial Solutions enters administration

Market Financial Solutions has made an application to enter administration as it works through an "unexpected banking-related issue"

Retirement advice approaches evolving amid regulatory and policy changes

Financial advisers in the UK are evolving their retirement advice approaches to better navigate client planning needs amid regulatory and policy changes, a report from BNY Investments and NextWealth has shown

Metro Bank hits record growth in corporate and commercial lending

Metro Bank has published 67% growth in new corporate, commercial and SME lending in 2025, which is a record for the high street bank. In this period, the bank also returned to profit, recovering from a loss of £14m in the 2024 financial year to a profit of £98.1m

8.6 million savings accounts exposed to tax

Over 8.6 million adult non-ISA savings accounts across the UK are generating enough annual interest to breach personal savings allowance (PSA) thresholds, new research by Paragon Bank has indicated

Financial advice firm The Retirement Studio launches

A new financial advice firm providing retirement planning, pension advice, and investment solutions, The Retirement Studio, has launched following authorisation from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)

Safeway Pension Scheme secures £80m buy-in with Canada Life

The Safeway Pension Scheme has completed an £80m buy-in with Canada Life, insuring the benefits of over 350 deferred members and 1,450 pensioners

Self-employed workers more than twice as likely to think they will never retire

Self-employed workers are more than twice as likely as employed workers to believe they will never retire, according to research from the Get Britain Pension Ready campaign

Senior plc Pension Plan secures £180m buy-in with M&G

The Senior plc Pension Plan has completed a £180m buy-in with M&G, securing the pension benefits of over 3,000 members

Later life professional advice demand remains 'untapped' – Just Group

There is "untapped" demand for professional advice in later life care, Just Group has stated

Suttons acquires KSP Financial

Financial planning and wealth management firm, Suttons Independent Financial Advisors, has announced the acquisition of KSP Financial for an undisclosed amount

Residential property transactions fall 24% month-on-month

Residential property transactions have fallen by 24% month-on-month in January to an estimated 79,880, following a 1% increase in December, HMRC has revealed

Majority of Brits have no investments amid lack of understanding

More than half (55%) of British adults do not have any investments amid a general lack of understanding, according to Aviva

St. James’s Place closes 2025 with record FuM

St. James’s Place (SJP) has announced that it closed 2025 with a record £220bn in funds under management (FuM), up from £190.2bn a year previously

Mortgage Brain rolls out broker technology to Primis members

Mortgage Brain has announced that following a successful first pilot last year, its next-generation broker technology will now be rolled out to Primis members through the firms’ partnership

Finova powers Offa’s Sharia-compliant HPP launch

Finova has announced it will power the launch of Offa’s new Sharia-compliant home purchase plan (HPP)

AI use by advice professionals doubles in past year – The Lang Cat

The number of advice professionals already using AI as part of their business has increased from 29% to 60% in the last year, The Lang Cat has revealed

Norton Home Loans adds DIP and ONS affordability to broker panel

Norton Home Loans has enhanced its broker portal by introducing an online decision in principle (DIP) and a new two-tier affordability assessment using Office for National Statistics (ONS) modelled expenditure

Nationwide doubles households who can benefit from 0% green home borrowing

Nationwide has doubled the number of households who can benefit from its 0% green additional borrowing products, as part of its efforts to support energy-efficient homeownership

News in brief - 4 March 2026

Today's round up of developments coming out of the consumer finance space, featuring United Trust Bank Asset Finance, Access Financial Services and Vida

PIMFA appoints new chairman

PIMFA has announced the appointment of Lord Tyrie as the trade body’s new chairman

Hope Capital Property Finance renews partnership with Brickflow

Hope Capital Property Finance has renewed its partnership with Brickflow as part of its focus on maintaining accessibility for brokers

BLOG: Are added-value services the key to engaging clients in protection?

Scottish Widows Protection Director, Rose St Louis, discusses how reframing protection conversations can help to engage clients

BLOG: Award-winning lending, built brick by brick

Saffron for Intermediaries discusses its latest lending offering on the MoneyAge blog

BLOG: Doing Good is Good Business

MoneyAge Awards winner Bespoke Advice discusses the key fundamentals of good financial planning in our latest blog piece

Lending with a difference: A conversation with Family Building Society’s Nathan Waller

With demand growing for more flexible mortgage solutions, Family Building Society is carving out a strong reputation in later life, family-assisted, and buy to let lending. We speak to Nathan Waller, Business Development Manager at Family Building Society, to discuss how they’re supporting brokers, addressing complex borrower needs, and adapting to an evolving market.

Check out our latest advertorials

Funding home adaptations: The changing needs in later life planning

The Bank of Family

Delivering A Consumer-Focused Later Life Lending Sector for 2026 and Beyond

Later Life Lending: It’s more than just equity release or retirement interest only (RIO)

View More Advertorials

Latest videos

View More Videos

FREE E-NEWS SIGN UP

Subscribe to our newsletter to receive breaking news and other industry announcements by email.

  Please tick here to confirm you are happy to receive third party promotions from carefully selected partners.


BANNER

Mortgage Advice Bureau and AI in the mortgage sector
Chief executive officer at Mortgage Advice Bureau, Peter Brodnicki, and founder and managing director at Heron Financial, Matt Coulson, joined content editor Dan McGrath to discuss how Mortgage Advice Bureau is using artificial intelligence to make advancements in the mortgage industry, the limitations of this technology and what 2026 will hold for the market

Perenna and the long-term fixed mortgage market
Content editor, Dan McGrath, spoke to head of product, proposition and distribution at Perenna, John Davison, to explore the long-term fixed mortgage market, the role that Perenna plays in this sector and the impact of the recent Autumn Budget

NEW BUILD IN FOCUS - NEW EPISODE OF THE MORTGAGE INSIDER PODCAST, OUT NOW
Figures from the National House-Building Council saw Q1 2025 register a 36% increase in new homes built across the UK compared with the same period last year, representing a striking development for the first-time buyer market. But with the higher cost of building, ongoing planning challenges and new and changing regulations, how sustainable is this growth? And what does it mean for brokers?

Does the North-South divide still exist in the UK housing market?
What do the most expensive parts of the country reveal about shifting demand? And why is the Manchester housing market now outperforming many southern counterparts?



In this episode of the Barclays Mortgage Insider Podcast, host Phil Spencer is joined by Lucian Cook, Head of Research at Savills, and Ross Jones, founder of Home Financial and Evolve Commercial Finance, to explore how regional trends are redefining the UK housing, mortgage and buy-to-let markets.

Advertisement
© 2019 Perspective Publishing     Privacy & Cookies