NatWest saw a 12% increase in mortgage lending in the last quarter (ending September 30th) leading it to upgrade its fiscal forecast for this financial year.
Overall the high street heavyweight completed £11bn of mortgage lending in the quarter, some £3bn more than it did in the same period last year.
But despite the positive results, NatWest CEO Alison Rose said the bank is mindful of the challenges facing people across the UK.
She said: “At a time of increased economic uncertainty, we are acutely aware of the challenges that people, families and businesses are facing up and down the country.
“Although we are not yet seeing signs of heightened financial distress, we are very conscious of the growing concerns of our customers and we are closely monitoring any changes to their finances or behaviours,” she said.
“The bank’s strong capital and liquidity mean we are able to help those who are likely to need it the most, through support for our community partners, proactive outreach to our customers or targeted lending packages for the most impacted sectors.”
The results also show that NatWest achieved a pre-tax operating profit of £1.1bn, up from just under £1bn a year ago.
Rose added: “In a challenging environment, NatWest Group continues to deliver a strong financial performance; supporting our customers, responsibly growing our lending and making significant investments to transform the bank.”
