Secure Trust expects FY pre-tax profits at top end of consensus estimates

Retail and commercial banking group Secure Trust said on Thursday that it now anticipates full-year pre-tax profits will be above the top end of analysts' consensus estimates.

Secure Trust stated that its full financial year 2021 IFRS 9 impairment charge was now expected to be "materially below consensus" estimates of £12.9m, while expectations on a pre IFRS9 provision basis were unchanged, as were expectations for the level of IFRS9 provisions in 2022, which will be driven by the provisioning required on the expected increased level of lending activity.

Separately, Secure Trust revealed it had agreed to acquire proprietary technology platform owner AppToPay as part of an effort to support its planned entry into the digital "Buy Now Pay Later" market.

While Secure Trust opted not to disclose the value of the transaction, the group stated it was "a small amount" but said the acquisition represented "a significant step forward" in its strategy to seek "attractive returns in niche segments" and scale its core businesses, both organically and through value-accretive mergers and acquisitions.

As of 1010 GMT, Secure Trust shares were untraded at 1,300.0p