Metro Bank goes for growth with £300m stockmarket flotation
Metro Bank is seeking to give its more established competitors a run for their money with a £300m stockmarket listing, valuing the bank at more than £1bn.
This cash would be used to fund a new wave of branch openings, introducing the brand to seven new locations including Tunbridge wells and Harrow over the course of the year.
Since opening in 2010 Metro Bank has opened in excess of 500,000 customer accounts, 56 per cent of them in the past year alone following a simplification of the current account switching process.
This has sparked a bout of competition within the industry as banks seek to win custom with a range of sweeteners and perks, such as high interest rates on deposits and welcome bonuses.
One of the beneficiaries of this process Metro Bank has seen its total deposits grow to £3.4bn over the three months to March, an 18 per cent increase on the previous quarter.
Metro chairman Vernon Hill told The Times: “We’ve said we would plan to float next year — no one has ever grown a bank at these rates.”
“When we float, we aim to raise £300m, all to go into the business for growth.”
Despite making progress the bank continues to make a loss, sinking £8.5m into the red over the first quarter – although this was down from the £10.6m loss recorded over the same period last year.