Metro Bank raises £126m from investors to expand

METRO Bank, the boutique rival to Britain’s “big-five” high street lenders, has raised a further £126 million from new and existing institutional and personal investors to finance more branch openings after what analysts say has been a quiet start.

The group, which has a dozen “stores” in the UK after being launched two years ago, also confirmed it was looking at a possible stock market flotation from 2014 onwards. The bank was launched with the backing of American businessman Vernon Hill.

The latest tapping of investors is the third round of growth capital at Metro, whose self-styled “customer-friendly” offer includes coin counting at every outlet and customers being allowed to bring their dogs in, with water bowls and dog biscuits provided.

Metro now has more than 80,000 personal and business accounts. Chief executive Craig Donaldson said: “We have ambitious expansion plans, and customer reaction to the Metro Bank model means that we are confident in achieving our ambitions.”

Meanwhile, another lender, Cambridge & Counties Bank, was launched yesterday to target small firms. The bank is jointly owned by the Cambridge Local Government Pension Fund and Trinity Hall, a Cambridge University college.

Mark Hoban, financial secretary to the Treasury, said: “I’m pleased to support a new bank that will focus on lending to the small and medium-sized businesses that make up such a vital part of the UK economy.”