Close Brothers Group PLC (LSE:CBG) reported a slight rise in the loan book at its banking division in the first quarter in what it described as a solid performance.
In a trading update, the group said the loan book grew to £9.13bn in the first quarter to 31 October 2022 from £9.10bn at the end of July, reflecting continued demand in the commercial businesses, although new business volumes in motor finance moderated.
The property loan book was stable in the period as early redemptions were balanced by drawdowns from its strong pipeline while year-to-date net interest margins remained strong, the company stated.
Bad debts remained stable at 1.2% and no significant impact has been seen yet from the external environment.
Despite the challenging market conditions, its asset management business delivered year-to-date annualised net inflows of 7% although managed assets decreased to £14.8bn from £15.3bn, reflecting negative market movements.
Winterflood's performance continued to be impacted by the market-wide slowdown in trading activity, Close Brothers noted.
Adrian Sainsbury, chief executive officer, said: “We have delivered a solid start to the financial year, despite the backdrop of heightened market uncertainty.”
“Our margin remained strong in the Banking division, we increased net inflows in CBAM and while trading activity remained subdued in Winterflood, we grew our assets under administration in Winterflood Business Services.”