Chancellor welcomes over £1bn of Aldermore lending

The news was announced alongside a visit by the Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne to Aldermore's offices in Wilmslow on Friday last week.

The Chancellor, George Osborne said: "It's great to see new banks like Aldermore entering the market and shaking up the competition. They are rightly proud of what they have accomplished on SME lending over the last three years, and I hope their support for this important sector will continue to grow strongly.

"I am very pleased that they've joined our Funding for Lending Scheme which is helping businesses and families borrow affordably and supporting banks like Aldermore that want to lend more. It's great to have Aldermore creating jobs and supporting customers here in Wilmslow."

Supporting SME customers to finance and grow their businesses has been one of the cornerstones of Aldermore's strategy since its launch.

Aldermore has around 12,000 SME customers and has increased its client base by 52% in the past year whilst many other banks are scaling back their SME loan books.

Alongisde growing its SME loan book Aldermore has also attracted more than £2bn of retail and business savings.

The news comes just after the Government announced it was establishing a new Business Bank that will help stimulate and diversify the business finance market in the UK.

Phillip Monks, chief executive of Aldermore, said: "This is fantastic news for Aldermore and for our SME customers at a time when the general economy and lending to British businesses have been in the doldrums.

“While other lenders have been cutting back, Aldermore has consistently increased its lending volumes. Our strategy of being the SME champion is clearly working and we will keep supporting our customers who are the lifeblood of the UK economy."