Shawbrook Bank has revealed to B&C that it does not have any plans to float in the immediate future, despite recording pre-tax profits of £16.8 million.

Shawbrook Bank has announced pre-tax profits of £16.8 million, however in an interview with B&C, Managing Director of Commercial Lending, Stephen Johnson, has quashed rumours that the bank intends to launch an IPO. 

The impressive results sees the Challenger Bank, prominent in both commercial and secured lending, turning round a loss of £7.1m for 2012, with the news of a profitable end to 2013.

There has been much speculation recently as to whether the successful but fairly new challenger bank will float, but this news may surprise many within the industry.

With rumours of other banks such as Aldermore, Virgin Money and Metro Bank also reportedly considering a float, this year was thought to see a stream of new listings.

Speaking to B&C, Stephen Johnson said: “We have no current plans. For now we will just stick to the business plan to grow.”

The Bank reported a 170 per cent increase in commercial property lending, with the overall figure coming in at a staggering £541 million.

Secured lending also continued to fuel Shawbrook’s growth, with overall lending at £295 million for the year, an 81 per cent increase on last year.

Shawbrook also announced that it has acquired Centric Commercial Finance. The firm joins them with over £200 million of advance SME’s.

Centric will keep running under its current teams, with their Managing Director reporting back to Shawbrooks’s CEO Richard Pyman.

Shawbrook chose Centric as an acquisition due to its similar values and working culture, as well as allowing the bank to develop further into the SME market.

Shawbrook has become one of the largest banks in the commercial lending sector, a rapid growth which Stephen Johnson puts down to the continual hard work and focus on partnerships and the search for new opportunities within the industry.

“We are always looking for new opportunities within the market,” Mr Johnson added, “and Centric suits us well.”

Also commenting on the news, Richard Pyman, CEO of Shawbrook Bank, said: “2013 was a pivotal year for Shawbrook. Our specialist lending teams have focused on delivering a quality service with an unwavering emphasis on human underwriting and simple, straightforward processes. Our financial intermediaries have been thecornerstone of this work and will continue to be our most important lending channel. The result of this collaboration is outstanding organic growth across the business in 2013, and a significant rise in SME lending. We are in excellent shape for future growth in 2014 and beyond. 

“The acquisition of Centric Commercial Finance is an exciting strategic move for Shawbrook. We can now offer SMEs a broader range of funding services to support their growth aspirations, and the move will enable Shawbrook to become an even more prominent business lending bank. Centric’s dedication to traditional customer service and tailored lending solutions fits very nicely with our own, and we have ambitious plans to grow the business under Shawbrook this year.”