Non-Standard Finance (NSF) in an update on Thursday, hailed an ‘impressive’ performance of its branch-based lending business, and better than expected home credit performance during 2019.

NSF said its branch-based ‘Everyday Loans’ business experienced a 17% increase to £218.3 million in its net loan book before fair value adjustments, and a 23% increase in total customers to 75,400.

The company said consumer demand for branch-based lending was strong, and opened 8 new branches in 2019, bringing the total to 73. NSF told investors it aims to operate 100 branches in the medium term, by splitting a few larger branches.

Its home credit business, ‘Loans at Home’, performed better than expected, ending the year with a net loan book of £39.8 million, down from £41 million, as part of a drive to shorten the loan book, the company said.

Shares in Non-Standard Finance were trading 4.66% higher at 24.6p on Thursday

NSF said home credit sales volumes to existing customers were lower than last year, but new customer volumes were ‘strong’, with a total number of customers ending the year broadly flat at 92,400, compared to 93,800 in 2018.

NSF said as a whole, trading for the final months of 2019 were as expected, and anticipates full year results to be in line with expectations.

The update comes as the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors reported a lift in the UK property market as a result of the general election result, with the number of house sales in the UK increasing for the first time in seven months.

NSF also told investors that it was in the final stages of completing a £150-200m debt facility.

The firm said the six-year securitisation facility will fund future loan book growth and provide a ‘meaningful reduction’ to funding costs, compared to its existing long-term funding arrangements that mature in 2023.

The company reported cash at 2019 year end of £14.2m, up from £13.9m in 2018, and gross borrowings of £323.2m, up from £272.8m in 2018.

On Tuesday before the update, New York-based hedge fund Basswood Capital Management, LLC increased its stake in London-listed NSF to 3.246%.

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