Small business lending sees uptick at Paragon bank in latest half year

Paragon bank reported that its small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) lending business had seen an uptick in new lending in the first half of its to end-March.

It delivered new lending of £230.2 million for the six months - a 4.6% increase on the same period last year.

READ MORE: Traditional banking approach more valued than ever according to Paragon Bank's John Phillipou

John Phillipou, Paragon Banks’ SME lending managing director, said: "We are pleased to record an increase in our new lending, particularly given the challenging environment SMEs faced in 2023.

"UK SMEs are resilient and flexible, adapting to the pressures of the past few years to grow their businesses. We’re pleased to be able to support them to achieve their ambitions," he added.

SME lending is one part of Paragon's commercial lending division. Overall, commercial lending volumes were slightly higher than in 2023 - at £589.8 million, the company said.

Commercial lending now accounts for 48% of new lending across the whole group.

Paragon Banking group is a specialist bank founded in 1985 and is a FTSE 250 company listed on the London Stock Exchange, employing 1,500 people.

It reported it had delivered another strong operational and financial performance in the latest half year with underlying profits up 13.5% to £146.3 million (2023 H1: £128.9M), driven by good loan growth, improved margins and tight cost control.

The group boasts more than £15 billion of assets under management.