Secure Trust Bank - FY23 underlying PBT broadly maintained

Secure Trust Bank’s (STB’s) Q423 trading update showcased a robust performance with net loans of £3.3bn, up 13.6% y-o-y. The bank reaffirmed that it is on track to deliver £5m in annualised cost savings in FY24 through its ongoing cost optimisation programme. Despite rising deposit costs, STB’s net interest margin (NIM) remained flat with H123 at 5.4%. STB’s disclosure of modest exposure to discretionary commissions in motor finance lending should be a relief to investors, as the ongoing Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) investigation has been an uncertainty overhanging the sector. Our underlying continuing PBT estimates fell by 2% on marginally lower NIM expectations. Meanwhile, we have reduced our continuing PBT estimate by 7% to £41.7m as we have included a £2.3m exceptional cost related to the FCA’s Borrowers in Financial Difficulty industry-wide review. Our FY24 estimates are unchanged.