CHIEFS at Skipton Building Society have hailed a 'solid performance' over the first half of 2016 following the publication of its interim results.

The society, the fourth largest in the UK, increased saving balances by £1.1bn - a growth of 43 per cent in the three years up to the end of June this year - and maintained gross lending at £1.9 billion.

The total group profit before tax was £72.1m to the end of June.

In May, global ratings agency Fitch upgraded the society's long term rating to A- (from BBB+) with a stable outlook and its short term rating was upgraded to F1 (from F2). This reflects the continued improvement of the society’s performance, chiefs maintain.

David Cutter, Skipton’s Group Chief Executive, said: “Skipton has delivered another strong performance during the first six months of 2016, achieving net customer growth of 20,389, climbing 11 places to 47th position in the Sunday Times Top 100 Companies to Work For, and being named Best Cash ISA Savings Provider and Best Savings Account Provider in the 2016 MoneySuperMarket ‘Supers’ awards.

“We’ve seen a significant increase in savings balances, from £12.8bn at the year end to £13.9bn at 30 June 2016 – a testament to the range of competitive savings accounts we offer. And the society’s net lending for the six months to 30 June 2016 was £0.6bn.

“With underlying group profit before tax of £72.1m, we’ve secured healthy profits, ensuring we continue to maintain a sustainable business - and one that remains resilient and robust, with strong capital and leverage ratios.

“These are yet another set of solid results for Skipton, and we have seen continued strong growth in our mortgage and savings balances whilst continuing to build our capital base.

“The economic uncertainty that has arisen since the EU Referendum makes it more difficult to forecast trading conditions in the short to medium term, in particular any movements in bank base rate and any impact on housing transactions and house prices...but we are well placed to manage the risks that we face and to capitalise upon any opportunities that may arise – for the benefit of our members."