Aldermore is celebrating six years in business.

The lender was founded during the economic downturn in 2009, two months after the Bank of England cut the base rate to a record low 0.5%. Starting with 50 staff at launch, the bank now has over 850 staff located across the UK.

Last week, the bank announced that in the first quarter of 2015 its total lending increased by 7% to £5.1 billion, £2.4 billion of which consisted of lending to SMEs. In addition at the end of March, total customer deposits stood at £4.7 billion, including £1.1 billion of SME savings.

In March, Aldermore Group PLC successfully floated on the London Stock Exchange, raising £75 million of gross primary equity. In April, it joined the Help to Buy: equity loan scheme, more than a year after it began offering homeowners loans through the Help to Buy: mortgage guarantee scheme.

Aldermore provides straightforward banking to around 170,000 customers across the UK in the form of award-winning asset and invoice finance, mortgages and savings products and serves customers online, via intermediaries and from its 12 regional offices.

Phillip Monks, Aldermore chief executive, said: “Each year that passes gives us another opportunity to reflect on our tremendous growth. Aldermore was created to offer an alternative to the traditional high street lenders and we are proud of the support we have been able to extend to Britain’s SMEs, homeowners and savers since our launch six years ago.

“In 2009, we recognised that there was a real need in the UK for a bank that was straightforward and transparent, and one that gave businesses and individuals a level of customer service that had been lacking in the banking sector. This approach remains at the heart of what we do and I’d like to thank all of our customers for choosing Aldermore.”