Profit before tax came in at £74m for the quarter ending 31 March, down from £1.6bn in the same three months a year earlier
Lloyds revealed it had granted around 400,000 mortgage payment holidays, and a further 480,000 payment breaks on personal and business loans, credit cards and motor financing.
Profit before tax came in at £74m for the quarter ending 31 March, down from £1.6bn in the same three months a year earlier.
In large part, this was down to the bank setting aside a loan impairment charge of £1.4bn as the coronavirus and resulting economic downturn is expected to drastically affect the number of bad loans.
In a statement Lloyds said: Given the economic outlook we will inevitably be impacted both within the existing book and potentially in the new lending we are undertaking to support our customers. However, the group’s loan portfolio remains robust and well positioned given its low risk business mode.
Previous guidance for the year has been scrapped, but Lloyds warned lower rates, lower levels of activity and higher impairment will impact the second quarter.
The bank’s net interest margin fell to 2.79 per cent from 2.91 per cent year-on-year.
The group did not reveal gross mortgage lending for the quarter.
António Horta-Osório, group chief executive, said: The coronavirus pandemic presents an unprecedented social and economic challenge which is having a significant impact on people and businesses in the UK and around the world.
The economic outlook is clearly challenging with the longer-term outcome dependent on the severity and length of the pandemic and the mitigating impact of government and other measures in the UK and across the world, he said.
Throughout this period of uncertainty we will continue to work closely with government, regulators and other authorities and use the strength of our balance sheet and business model to ensure that we play our part in supporting our customers and the UK economy, Horta-Osório said.
I would like to pay tribute to the exemplary dedication being shown by all our colleagues across the group providing vital banking services to those in need, but also in going above and beyond in countless and often unseen ways to support the most vulnerable, he said.