British lender Close Brothers makes "solid" start to financial year

(Reuters) - British lender Close Brothers Group <CBRO.L> said on Thursday it had made a "solid" start to its financial year amid challenging market conditions, driven by strength in its banking division and trading activity at its market maker, Winterflood.

The merchant banking group, which provides loans and wealth management and securities trading services, said the loan book at its banking division rose 1.9 percent to 7.4 billion pounds in the quarter ended August.

(Reporting by Noor Zainab Hussain and Adil Bhat in Bengaluru; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty)