West Bromwich Building Society reports £8.4 m losses

Nov 27 2009 by Jon Griffin, Birmingham Mail

WEST Bromwich Building Society chalked up losses of £8.4 million for the half-year to September 30, figures revealed today.

They compare with a £7.6 million profit for the corresponding period in 2008 but mark a huge improvement on the £46.9 million losses incurred in the six months to March 2009.

A statement said: “This improvement is primarily as a result of a dramatic fall in the charges made to cover potential credit losses, mainly in the commercial loan book.”

Chief executive Robert Sharpe said: “These results represent a significant improvement on the society’s year-end results and demonstrate that we are seeing the benefits of the West Brom’s renewed focus on its traditional strengths as a regionally-based building society.

“With a strategy underpinned by an emphasis on risk reduction, we strengthened our capital position significantly during the half-year which, together with a managed reduction of the balance sheet, gives us one of the strongest capital bases in the sector.

“Of course, as for the sector as a whole, the economic outlook will be unsettled for some time, but we believe the West Brom has made good progress over the half-year as our performance indicates.

“Accordingly, if we can maintain this momentum, the society will be well placed to take advantage of more favourable market conditions as the economy recovers.”