Fledgeling Metro Bank sees a surge in customer numbers

Metro Bank, which operates in London and the south east of England, said yesterday that customer accounts rose by 183 per cent to 136,000 at the end of the year, with numbers increasing by a further 25 per cent in the first quarter of 2013.

Customer deposits nearly trebled to £576m, echoing the rate of growth in its loan book, which stood at £168m at the end of 2012.

Challengers such as Metro Bank, Virgin Money and Aldermore have looked to pick up customers either unhappy with the service provided by bigger banks or those who have been shunned by established lenders as they shrink balance sheets and build up capital reserves to meet new regula- tions.

Britain’s ‘Big Five’ banks – Lloyds, RBS, Barclays, HSBC and Santander UK – have been plagued by scandals ranging from the mis-selling of loan insurance to the rigging of benchmark interest rates.

Metro Bank made a 2012 net loss of £34.6m, which it said reflected significant investment in building stores, infrastructure and sys-tems.

It opened its 17th branch last month and plans to have 25 by the end of the year and hopes to open 40 stores nationwide by 2014, aiming for 200 by 2020.

The bank raised £126m in June from external investors to fund future expansion and is targeting a listing on the London Stock Exchange in 2014.