Secure mulls mortgage offering

Developers are borrowing to build. The bank's standout activity from the first half was real estate finance - where it lends to residential and commercial developers - which was up to £266m at the end of the reported period, from just £12.5m a year before. Companies are also using credit to renew their infrastructure. The nascent asset financing business for the same small and medium-sized companies also grew to £30m at the end of June.

Historically high consumer credit demand has boosted Secure Trust's 'point of sale' lending, where it provides unsecured finance for in-store and online retailers. Balances here grew to £195m from £134m last year. Motor finance and everyday unsecured loans also grew strongly, sending overall operating income up 42 per cent year on year at £62.2m.

How can Secure Trust add to this organic growth? The first option is acquisitions, but management have not been bowled over by the opportunities in the market. The company is also considering joining the likes of OneSavings Bank (OSB) in the buy-to-let mortgage market, but the Budget's tax changes could make this a non-starter.

Analysts at Canaccord Genuity expect EPS of 164.2p for the full year, compared with 156.3p in 2014.