Overview
- Barclays, which reported Tuesday, booked £823 million in first‑quarter impairments including a £228 million single‑name loss widely reported to be tied to Market Financial Solutions, and still posted £2.8 billion in pre‑tax profit.
- Chief executive C. S. Venkatakrishnan called the loss a well‑publicised sophisticated fraud and said Barclays is tightening lending to structured finance counterparties with weaker controls.
- Barclays also added about £105 million to its motor‑finance redress reserve, taking it to £430 million for mis‑sold car loans that hid dealer commissions under the UK regulator’s compensation scheme.
- Lloyds, following Wednesday’s update, reported £2 billion in profit, lifted its net interest income goal above £14.9 billion, and recorded £295 million in impairments with £101 million linked to the Middle East shock to the outlook.
- Santander UK’s profit fell 44% after a further £179 million set‑aside for motor‑finance payouts, while rising bank profits have spurred talk of extra taxes that Lloyds and Barclays executives urged the government to resist.