Banks meet Merlin commitments1
10/02/2012

Statement issued on behalf of the Merlin banks.

The Merlin banks (Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds Banking Group, RBS and Santander) have met business lending commitments under the Merlin Agreement. The five banks delivered £214.9 billion in gross new lending to UK businesses during 2011, including £74.9 billion to SMEs.

A spokesman for the Merlin banks said:

“The Merlin banks have met their overall business lending commitments. This performance demonstrates the banks’ commitment to providing businesses with the financial support they need to invest and grow and the significant progress made this year.” 

As the Bank of England Credit Conditions Survey reported in January 2012, ‘the demand for credit from small businesses has declined in three out of four quarters in 2011’.

“The bank’s efforts to encourage customers to come forward with borrowing proposals are set against this overall challenging economic environment. The business demand for credit remains weak.”

Notes to Editors

1. Today’s figures are a provisional estimate of aggregate gross new business lending for 2011. This information will be formally published, in aggregate, by the Bank of England on 13 February 2012.

2. The full text of the Merlin agreement (9 Feb 2011) can be found at: http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/d/bank_agreement_090211.pdf