Member Article

Metro Bank commits £30m to UK professional services sector

London-based Metro Bank is to team up with SME business finance firm LDF as part of a new £30m initiative to support the UK’s professional services sector.

This new dedicated funding line for legal and accounting businesses follows the launch of the bank’s tailored lending service, which aims to provide SMEs with a range of short-term funding options, including tax and asset finance.

Covering the next 18 months, the £30m funding commitment sees the self-described ‘entrepreneur bank’ angling itself further into the small and medium sized lending market amid warnings that the bigger banks could put a choke on SME lending following Brexit.

Metro Bank is part of the leading pack of new generation of challenger banks founded in the wake of the 2008 financial crash, and announced a 63% jump in year-on-year turnover last month.

Commenting on the new funding, Nathan Mollett, Head of Asset Finance at Metro Bank, said: “The professional services is an integral sector in the UK economy and we’re delighted to be able to support it with an additional dedicated line of funding.

“We understand how demanding the sector can be and hope that by working closely with LDF we can enable more businesses to prosper.”

LDF are hoping to utilise the partnership to strengthen its presence in legal and accounting sector as it targets an even greater presence amongst the the 20% of the UK’s professional services firms.