Britain's Nationwide Building Society has today reported robust half-year profits despite a £139m provision for loans that may not be repaid due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The lender reported a pre-tax profit of £361m for the six months to September, up 17% from £309m the previous year.
The mortgage lender is Britain's second-largest provider of home loans.
It said it was boosted by strong demand for buy to let mortgages, although its net lending over the period dropped to £1.6 billion, nearly half of the previous year's £3 billion.
The results covered the bulk of Britain's first lockdown to control the spread of the virus and the reopening of much of the economy over the summer.
The period did not capture the impact of more recent economic and social restrictions in the UK.
