Marlene Shiels

The Edinburgh-based ethical lender issued almost £1.1 million of loans in February, an increase of 36% on the same month last year.

CCU’s chief executive, Marlene Shiels, said: “This is only the second time we have ever topped £1m in loans in a month and two clear reasons have emerged for this.

“One of the key factors was the number of people taking out car loans in February and there is also a clear message coming through that people are looking for ethical financial services providers.

“Consumers are certainly becoming increasingly careful about the institutions they borrow from and as a trusted local presence, we are well placed to take advantage of this as we help our members become more financially resilient.

“We have also invested heavily in technology and our systems now allow us to compete more effectively with other major high street and online lenders, both in actually issuing loans very quickly and in the ongoing servicing of them.”

In total CCU issued 453 loans in February, an increase of 21% on the same period in 2023. This included 131 loans for people with fewer financial choices.