Internet bank Egg is forecasting full year profits for its UK business ahead of analyst expectations for £69 million.
In a trading update, Egg is reporting healthy growth in credit card accounts and cross sales of loan products as well as high insurance volumes for the final quarter.
The standalone bank has had a turbulent year, including an aborted sale of the business by parent company Prudential and a costly exit from its loss-making operations in France. The group is also booking a £3 million provision this quarter for the transfer of its funds supermarket to Fidelity FundsNetwork.
Paul Gratton, Chief Executive says: "It has been a challenging year for Egg with the uncertainty caused by the auction process and the strong competition in the early part of the year impacting our first half results. However recent trading confirms that the sales momentum seen in the third quarter is continuing and we look forward to 2005 with confidence."
Shares in Egg moved up five per cent to 99.25 pence, way off the year high of 194 pence achieved at the height of the auction process.