Metro Bank signs lease for new site in Leeds as it returns to profit
Metro Bank has revealed a return to profit for the past year after slashing costs across its operations and shifting towards corporate lending.
The London-based lender told shareholders that it delivered an £87.2 million pre-tax profit for 2025, bouncing back from a £212.1 million loss a year earlier.
The profit came after the company cut its costs by 7% over the year, more than the 4% to 5% range previously expected. Boss Dan Frumkin told reporters that the reductions were linked to renegotiations with some of its larger suppliers, the “streamlining” of some operations as well as increased automation. The company has heavily reduced its cost base in recent years as part of a major turnaround since 2023. In the years since, the lender has cut more than 1,000 roles and also scrapped the seven-day-a-week opening hours across its branches – once a central feature of the banking group. Nevertheless, the company stressed that it was still committed to retail customers and would continue to open more high street banks.
Bosses said the company, which currently has 78 branches, has signed leases for new sites in Newcastle and Leeds and believes it could grow to as many as 120 locations.
Mr Frumkin said: “2025 was a year of strong growth and successful delivery for Metro Bank.”