The bank’s financial performance declined due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, and the business is currently recovering
Lloyds Banking Group headquarters in London, UK. (Credit: Carcharoth/Wikipedia.)
Lloyds Banking Group has reported a net income of £3.59bn for the quarter ended 31 December 2020, a 13% decrease compared to £4.13bn for the same period in 2019.
The bank reported total costs of £2.15bn for the reported period, a 5% decline compared to £2.27bn for the corresponding quarter in 2019.
The company reported a cost-income ratio of 59.9% for the fourth quarter of 2020, which decreased compared to 55.1% for the same period in 2019.
The bank attributed the decline in financial performance to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and is currently seeing positive developments in the business.
Lloyds Banking Group chief executive António Horta-Osório said: “The impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the people, businesses and communities in the UK and around the world in 2020 has been profound.
“We remain absolutely focused on working together with all of our stakeholders to support our customers and ensure a sustainable recovery.
“The group’s unique business model, customer-focused strategy and transformation in recent years positioned us well to respond effectively to the needs of our customers in 2020.
“At the same time, the group’s financial performance in the year has been impacted by the pandemic.
“We are now seeing positive developments in the business, including growth of £10.2 billion in the open mortgage book in the second half of the year and total deposits up £39 billion in the year, the latter given curtailed retail spending and inflows to our trusted brands.”
The company reported total customer deposits of £450.7bn for the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2020, a 9% decrease compared to £411.8bn for Q4 2019.
The firm reported loans and advances to customers of £440bn for Q4 2020, which remained almost unchanged compared to Q4 2019.
The bank reported a Loan to deposit ratio of 98% for Q4 2020, which declined compared to 107% for Q4 2019.
Lloyds Bank said that it has offered more than £12bn lending to businesses through Government-supported schemes.
The schemes include Bounce Back Loan, Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan and Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loan schemes.