Manx Financial Group, a financial services holding company, said that its fully-owned banking subsidiary Conister Bank has secured a UK branch banking licence.
The licence gives Conister Bank the authorisation to accept deposits in the UK.
Based in the Isle of Man, the Manx Financial subsidiary is an independent bank that was established in 1935. The community bank is now the first Island-based bank to obtain a deposit-taking licence in the UK.
Conister Bank managing director Douglas Grant said: “It is a testament to our professionalism, ambition, and credibility that we have achieved something that no other local bank has ever done – an Island-based bank gaining approval from the UK regulator for deposit-taking.”
The authorisation for deposit-taking, which has been granted approval by both the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), clears the path for the bank to realise a key strategic goal of entering the UK deposit-taking market.
The deposits, in addition to those sourced from the Isle of Man, are expected to bolster Conister Bank’s expansion efforts, both within the local market and across the UK.
The bank has been active in the UK for several years and presently lends close to £0.35bn per annum to British small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
It also has a Class 1(1) Deposit Taking license issued by the Isle of Man Financial Services Authority (FSA) and is subject to regulation by the Financial Conduct Authority for consumer credit lending activities in the UK.
Gaining the PRA approval is also expected to enable Conister Bank to expand its balance sheet by leveraging a combination of UK deposits and wholesale funding. This will enable the bank to extend increased lending support to the British SME market.
Manx Financial Group CEO Douglas Grant said: “Obtaining PRA authorisation to acquire deposits via our Basingstoke branch is a key step in our growth strategy as it will supplement the liquidity we receive from our loyal Isle of Man depositors.
“We will deploy this additional liquidity to build upon our record lending for the first half of this year in anticipation of achieving a total loan book of £0.4 billion for 2023.”
