Banking group claws back £459m from cash pile meant to cover bad debts
Earnings at Lloyds Banking Group have rebounded, with a forecast-beating £1.9bn in pre-tax profits for the first quarter, as the lender released cash that had been earmarked for potential loan defaults triggered by the pandemic.
The upbeat results came as other European lenders reported strong quarterly trading. Profits at Santander jumped to nearly five times their level last year after the Spanish bank avoided further loan loss charges, while Deutsche Bank recorded its highest quarterly profit since 2014 after a bumper performance by its investment bank.
