The Ipswich Building Society has posted pre-tax profits of £3.8m for the year ending 30 November 2014.
This compares to £3.2m on the previous year.
Over the year, the Society successfully completed a two-year IT transformation project and implemented the changes required by the Mortgage Market Review (MMR).
The Society followed its plan to divert resources away from writing new mortgage business in order to maintain a focus on service quality for its 60,000 members. This resulted in mortgage assets totalling £474m compared to £485m in 2013.
Paul Winter (pictured), chief executive of Ipswich Building Society, said: “This was a year of success in unusual circumstances. We’ve continued to serve our members well while managing change and introducing a new IT platform which provides us with a future-proofed system.
“Maintaining healthy levels of profit allows us to build a strong capital base which in turn supports reinvestment back into the business. Our mortgage lending remains substantially funded by retail deposits from members and I’m pleased to say that 2015 will be marked by a steady return to the mortgage market. We’ve made a start already but there’s plenty of innovation to come.
“MMR has thrown into the spotlight the case of a group we are calling ‘mortgage misfits’ – those who fall outside of the usual system when it comes to access to mortgage lending based on their ability to meet an often automated approach to lending criteria. Our manual underwriting process ensures we can offer fully compliant mortgages to the likes of the self-employed, self-builders, first-time buyers and older generations.”
Further developments in 2014 included the launch of All In, a membership programme exclusive for Society members which underlines its commitment to remaining a member-owned business and serves as a reminder of its mutual status. The Society continued to offer support in its heartland East of England region to community groups and activities and delivered 231 hours of financial education in local schools. Its employees raised a total of £10,206 for charities with the Society adding a further £5,983 to this as matched funding. The Society provides four hours per month for each employee to volunteer and this resulted in 616 hours of volunteering support, up from 375 in 2013.
Winter added: “We have a clear vision to become the most socially responsible building society in the UK and are on track with our programme. We’re proud to support the local communities we operate in.”
