Finance & Leasing Association11 March 2022
New figures released today by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) show that consumer finance new business grew by 51% in January 2022 compared with the same month in 2021. In the twelve months to January 2022, new business grew by 23% compared with the same period in 2021.
The credit card and personal loan sectors together reported new business up by 55% in January compared with the same month in 2021, while the retail store and online credit sector reported new business growth of 8% over the same period.
Commenting on the figures, Geraldine Kilkelly, Director of Research and Chief Economist at the FLA, said:
“The strong performance of the consumer finance market in January in part reflects shop closures during the third UK lockdown last year. Annual new business reported by FLA consumer finance providers in January was only 2% below its pre-pandemic level.
“The economic outlook in the UK and globally has weakened following the invasion of Ukraine, with consumer price inflation in the UK expected to peak at more than 8% in the first half of this year. This, combined with higher taxes and interest rates, will hit household disposable incomes and subdue consumer spending. Nevertheless, we continue to expect growth in FLA consumer finance sectors over the next year as members support consumers to make essential purchases.”
Table 1: New consumer credit lending
|
|
Jan 2022 |
% change on prev. year |
3 months to Jan 2022 |
% change on prev. year |
12 months to Jan 2022 |
% change on prev. year |
| Total FLA consumer finance (£m) |
8,768 |
51 |
27,226 |
32 |
103,438 |
23 |
| Data extracts: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Retail store and online credit (£m) |
670 |
8 |
2,782 |
2 |
9,198 |
7 |
| Credit cards & personal loans (£m) |
4,504 |
55 |
14,406 |
35 |
51,213 |
26 |
| Second charge mortgages (£m) |
91 |
56 |
305 |
52 |
1,143 |
62 |
| Car finance (£m) |
3,193 |
60 |
8,856 |
39 |
37,921 |
24 |
Note to editors:
- FLA members in the consumer finance sector include banks, credit card providers, store card providers, second-charge mortgage lenders, motor finance providers, personal loan and instalment credit providers.
- In 2021, FLA members provided £132 billion of new finance to UK businesses and households. £101 billion of this was in the form of consumer credit representing over a third of total new consumer credit written in the UK in 2021.
- Consumer motor finance reported in these figures refers to finance obtained through the point of sale.
- For media enquiries, please contact the FLA press office on 020 7420 9656.
