Mortgage balances increased to £275.9bn (2024: £204.5bn) with a market share of balances of 16.2% (2024: 12.3%), driven by record net lending of £15.5bn through the Nationwide brand.

The lender said it had helped 120,000 first-time buyers, more than any other lender in the UK, while its mortgage retention rate at almost 80% was the highest in the sector.

In addition, Virgin Money saw a return to growth in mortgage lending and a continued increase in business lending.

Commenting on the latest figures, Nationwide group chief executive officer Debbie Crosbie said the society had enjoyed an “outstanding twelve months.”

“Statutory profit before tax increased to over £2.3 billion, even after returning £1 billion directly to eligible members through the Fairer Share Payment and The Big Nationwide.”

She added: “The Virgin Money performance was strong in the six months since our acquisition, with improvements in customer service and a return to growth in mortgage lending.”

Earlier this month Nationwide joined a growing list of lenders adjusting their mortgage affordability calculation – in Nationwide’s case it reduced its stress rates by between 0.75 and 1.25 percentage points.

Nationwide reduced both its standard stress rate and the rate applied to eligible first-time buyers and home movers fixing their deal for at least five years.