Black & White Bridging boosts relationship team
Black & White Bridging has announced the appointment of a new relationship manager, Sophie Ali, as well as the promotion of four existing team members.
Sophie joins the Black & White team with experience managing broker relationships from her previous roles with Bluecroft Finance, where she was business development executive, and Pepper Money UK, where she held the role of broker account manager.
In her new position, she will be responsible for onboarding new brokers to Black & White’s system and ensuring they receive seamless ongoing service and support.
Sophie commented: “The Black & White team’s dedication to carving out real change in the sector by delivering a clear and transparent lending experience really stood out to me, and I’m looking forward to sharing that message with brokers. This is clearly a year of significant expansion for the relationship team, and I’m keen to help them continue to build on what they have started.”
This appointment comes hand in hand with several promotions within the existing relationship team.
Mike Underwood and Shahed Popat, who were both appointed to the team earlier this year as relationship managers, have now been promoted to relationship director roles. Mike drives origination across the south coast and Southwest region while Shahed who oversees the Southeast and the Home Counties.
Dan Nathan has also been promoted, progressing from internal relationship manager to relationship manager. Dan joined Black & White Bridging earlier this year as the inaugural member of its internal sales desk.
Sophie’s appointment to the team takes the company’s headcount to 32 full time members of staff, as well as moving Black & White closer to its gender balance target of 50:50.
Damien Druce, chief operating officer at Black & White Bridging, commented: “Since bringing Mike, Shahed and Dan onboard earlier this year, our relationships with our brokers have gone from strength to strength. Mike and Shahed have worked hard to drive broker engagement in their respective geographical regions, and we’re reaching more brokers, and therefore more clients, than ever. Dan’s promotion highlights his crucial role onboarding new brokers and delivering exceptional levels of service to Black & White’s existing brokers. They thoroughly deserve this recognition for all their hard work.
“The addition of Sophie to the team highlights the company’s ongoing growth and commitment to providing the very best customer service. She will provide more resource and ensure we’re able to build long-lasting relationships with brokers, delivering the high level of service we are known for. In an industry traditionally dominated by men, it’s great to see our gender balance now at 40:60, and we’re committed to pushing that number closer to 50:50 as we grow over time.”
Beyond the relationship team, Black & White Bridging has also rewarded its longest serving employee Sophie Organ, who has been promoted from finance assistant to assistant accountant for her work managing post-completion finance and compliance tasks.