ArchOver drives UK expansion in Hertfordshire & Bedfordshire
ArchOver, the P2P business lending platform, is expanding its presence in the UK with a new office in Hatfield. The regional hub will provide successful businesses in Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire with P2P loans to fund growth.
SMEs have received too little support from the Government, especially outside London – and ArchOver is pushing back. Its founders recognised the potential of the UK’s hard-working enterprises when it started trading back in 2014. Opening this regional office will enable ArchOver to position itself to connect local businesses with the funding they find difficult to access now.
ArchOver’s Hatfield office will cater specifically to businesses in the Hertfordshire-Bedfordshire area, facilitating finance that works for them with a deep understanding of their individual needs and local situation. In 2018, Grant Thornton said that Hertfordshire SMEs need to focus more on raising finance – ArchOver’s presence will help them do just that.
This expansion is the latest in a series for ArchOver’s growing network, with headquarters in London and a Midlands presence established in Birmingham in October 2018. The company has facilitated close to £100m in funding for UK businesses – and that figure will continue this momentum as it increases its presence across the UK.
Leading the office will be Dugald J. Carlean, an experienced corporate finance professional – who has lived in Harpenden for over 17 years. Prior to joining ArchOver, he held numerous senior positions across the UK SME investment banking space, providing funding services across various sectors. With over 25 years in finance, Carlean has a firm appreciation of the funding issues and wider challenges SMEs face. He brings a deep knowledge of the challenges and opportunities involved in SME funding in the area.
Commenting on the expansion, Carlean said: “The Government did little to support the SME sector in the Spring Budget Statement. It’s a tough time to be a smaller business, but the spirit of entrepreneurialism is rich in Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire. The region is a major hub for the UK SME economy, with 98,000 small-to-medium firms operating in sectors as diverse as pharma, fintech, construction, life sciences and advanced engineering.
“ArchOver’s new office is at the heart of commercial activity in the Hatfield Business Park and will provide a platform to inject much-needed finance into that already thriving landscape. I’m excited to be part my home region’s growth – and to lead this expansion of ArchOver’s existing successful business model.”
ArchOver CEO Angus Dent concluded: “Too many companies make the mistake of seeing the world through a ‘London-only’ lens. This country is full of fast-growing, sustainable businesses looking for supportive funding to help them grow – something that neither the Government nor the banks seem to understand. Our new office in Hatfield will help local companies get access to the cash they need to grow. While the banks continue to evacuate the SME space, we’re investing in the future of entrepreneurial business in Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire.”
