Metro Bank posted first-quarter net loans down 6% to £8.5bn, from the previous three months.  

The challenger bank said the fall reflected a £584m unsecured personal loan portfolio sale to an undisclosed party in February, in a market statement. 

Its net loans are 28% down from a year ago after several portfolio disposals. 

The lender said that it “continues to strategically reposition its balance sheet towards higher yielding corporate, commercial and SME lending and specialist mortgages”. 

The bank offers a range of buy-to-let lending to new landlords and limited companies. 

It added that the business has “a strong and high-quality credit approved commercial pipeline, equivalent to greater than 50% of total new lending in 2024, with year-to-date drawdowns already over 40% of total new lending in 2024”. 

Metro Bank chief executive Daniel Frumkin said: “During the first quarter of 2025, we have continued to deliver the strategic repositioning of Metro Bank’s business, maintaining strong cost control while driving higher net interest margin by changing the mix of assets and remaining disciplined about deposits.”  

“We have seen further growth in our corporate and commercial lending, with Metro Bank’s relationship banking and breadth of services creating differentiation for us in the market.”