High street bank with nearly 3,000,000 customers puts itself up for sale

Detailed summary

Metro Bank is looking for bidders after completing a successful turnaround in a major restructuring (Picture: Bloomberg) A major high street bank has announced it has put itself…

A major high street bank has announced it has put itself up for sale as it launches a strategic review with the aim of increasing growth.

Metro Bank, which has 78 branches across the UK, said the move followed a successful ‘substantial transformation’ of the business.

The group recently recorded its most profitable six months until June this year, when it reported pre-tax profits of £61 million.

This came after a major restructuring saw the firm cut 1,000 roles and axe seven-day a week opening for its branches in an end to one of its flagship policies.

While the bank has said it is not in active discussions with any buyers, it has invited interested bidders to contact advisers Morgan Stanley.

Metro Bank was originally launched to challenge existing British high street players and has since grown to serve nearly three million customers nationwide.

It is currently majority-owned by Colombian billionaire Jaime Gilinski Bacal, who owns a 53 per cent stake in the company.

After posting losses of £212.1 million in 2024, the bank returned to surplus in 2025.

‘The significant progress made by Metro Bank means it is now well-positioned to consider a broader range of strategic opportunities for its next phase of growth’, the bank said in a statement.

Opening of the article, excerpted from Metro. To read the rest, open the article on the publisher's site.