People walk past a branch of Lloyds Bank on Oxford Street in London, Britain July 28, 2016. REUTERS/Peter Nicholls/File Photo
Lloyds’ subsidiary Halifax will pay a purchase price of around 3.8 billion pounds, representing a 2.5% premium on the gross book value and will be funded using existing internal resources, the lender said. Uncertainty over Britain’s exit from the European Union has prevented interest rate increases that could have boosted loan margins, while a glut of new banks and rules pushing established players to lend more have increased the supply of mortgages.
Under the ownership of Tesco Bank, the portfolio, which comprises over 23,000 mortgage customers, generated income of around 81 million pounds and a pre-tax profit of around 9 million pounds in the year to February 28.