Manx Financial Group (AIM:MFX), the AIM-listed financial services group serving the Isle of Man and the UK, said its loan-to-deposit ratio at Conister Bank rose to 93.1% in the second quarter from 90.1% in the first.
The bank's operating income margin improved to 55.3% from 54.8% over the same period, supported by lower commission costs and higher realised gains on debt securities.
Tier 1 capital at Conister Bank increased to £47.3 million from £44.0 million, lifting its Total Capital Ratio to 15.8% from 15.2%.
Payment Assist, the group's automotive buy now pay later (BNPL) subsidiary, grew core lending volume to £71.2 million in the first half from £54.0 million a year earlier, a rise of 31.9%.
The unit passed £1 billion in cumulative customer transactions in May and launched Ignition, an all-in-one payments platform combining BNPL, instalment finance and business lending for garages and dealer groups.
Conister Bank has also signed a commercial agreement with Fiinu on 3 September for a proposed overdraft product, now expected to launch in mid-December.
The group said it currently expects no further provisions will be required for its Discretionary Commission Arrangements redress scheme, having deployed AI tools to cut third-party processing costs in handling claims.
"We are lending better, we are lending to a broader range of customers, diversifying our product offering and we are building the infrastructure to keep that growth going," said Payment Assist CEO Marcus Gregory.
The group's interim results are due later this month.
