Who are we?
We are The Co-operative Bank for Intermediaries.
We're not like other mortgage lenders. We're the only UK high street bank with a customer-led Ethical Policy, giving customers a real say in how we do things. Unlike a lot of businesses, we haven’t just developed an ethical approach, we've had one from the very start.
We've worked in the intermediary mortgage market for over 20 years. Everything we do is with broker feedback at the heart of it, designed to help your mortgage applications run smoothly. As well as expert advice whenever you need it, we put a wide range of online broker tools at your disposal.
For many, it's our ethical approach that sets us apart. Our excellent mortgage support also supports our mission to end youth homelessness with Centrepoint. So thanks to you, for every mortgage you complete with us, we'll make a donation towards helping young people sleeping rough in our hometown of Manchester.
Ethical then, now and always.
What makes us different?
We’re not like other mortgage lenders. We do things differently; aiming to make a positive impact for you, your customers, and the community, every step of the way.
As the only mortgage lender with a customer-led Ethical Policy, our customers get a real say in how we operate, and know exactly how our mortgages are funded. Our values are more than just a policy — they’re embedded in everything we do.
We’re committed to doing the right thing, the right way. In fact, we've been doing business in the right way from the very beginning, and our values and ethics underpin everything we do. They always have, and they always will.
We also continuously evolve and improve our processes based on your feedback, which we ask for in real time. That’s why we’ve introduced new products like our residential interest only mortgages, and digitised our declaration form signature process.
Our history
Born out of the co-operative movement in 1872, we are the original ethical bank and have been putting our principles into action ever since. We were founded by real people with a real desire to create a fairer business — one driven by co-operative values.
For us, doing good and doing good business have always gone hand in hand. And today, we’re just as committed to providing ethical services as we were over 150 years ago.
How we commit to our co-operative values
We’re proud to be the UK’s best rated high street bank for ESG*, for our ongoing commitments and achievements in the environmental, social, and governance spaces.
Sustainability is a key part of our ethical approach, which is why protecting the environment and creating a positive societal impact are particularly important to us. That’s why we work to combat climate change and reverse the decline in biodiversity, and why we take responsibility for our own environmental impact.
We also believe that we have a duty to tackle social and economic issues, which is what led us to start working with Centrepoint, the UK’s leading youth homelessness charity, in 2017.
As part of our partnership, our mortgages are helping the charity make a difference in society. For every eligible new mortgage you complete with us (including new customer mortgages and product switches), we make a £5 donation to Centrepoint to provide support to young people sleeping rough in our home city of Manchester.
The donations help to provide homeless youth with practical advice and support, and since 2018, Centrepoint has helped over 20,000 young people facing homelessness.
*As of January 2025, The Co-operative Bank received an ESG Risk Rating of 11.2 from Morningstar Sustainalytics and was assessed to be at low risk of experiencing ESG issues. In no event should this Risk Rating be construed as investment advice or expert opinion as defined by the applicable legislation.
Copyright 2025 Morningstar Sustainalytics. All rights reserved. This article contains information developed by Sustainalytics (www.sustainalytics.com). Such information and data are proprietary of Sustainalytics and/or its third party suppliers (Third Party Data) and are provided for informational purposes only. They do not constitute an endorsement of any product or project, nor an investment advice and are not warranted to be complete, timely, accurate or suitable for a particular purpose. Their use is subject to conditions available at www.sustainalytics.com/legal-disclaimers.