Newcastle Building Society reveals Manchester Building Society merger talks

A mutual is in discussions over a merger.

Newcastle Building Society says it has entered into an “exclusivity agreement” with Manchester Building Society.

Bosses say if successful, the deal would see the transfer of the latter’s engagements to the North East savings and mortgage provider.

However, they say talks are “at an early stage”, adding there is “no certainty any merger will occur”.

If the deal does go ahead, they say the earliest an agreement could be completed would be mid-2023.

A spokesperson said: “No formal commitment to proceed can be made until all appropriate due diligence investigations are completed.

“Upon the completion of that due diligence, the boards of both societies would then need to conclude the merger is in the best interests of their respective members.

“Only then would the process of obtaining the formal legal and regulatory approvals begin.”

Newcastle Building Society has around 336,000 members and 31 branches, many of which have undergone significant refurbishment in recent years as the mutual retains its high street presence.

As of December 31 last year, its total assets stood at £4.9 billion, making it the UK’s eighth largest building society.

Manchester Building Society has 11,000 members and no branches, and is the UK’s 41^st biggest mutual.