Two UK insurers, L&G and Prudential, continued their push into bank-style lending this morning, making loans to student housing developer Unite and coffee chain Caffè Nero.

M&G Investments, the fund management arm of the Prudential, is lending £30 million to Caffè Nero as part of a broad refinancing at the privately-held chain of coffee shops, which is taking out new loans in order to expand in the UK and abroad.