Secure Trust Bank Real Estate Finance celebrates origination team’s one year anniversary
Secure Trust Bank (STB) Real Estate Finance is celebrating the one-year anniversary of its origination team, which has doubled in size and seen the specialist property finance lender fund a number of new, unique deals in 2022.
The first twelve months saw relationship directors Mike Feasey, Vince Pang and Ben Hodis recruited into the team, joining existing members David Burke and Richard Lynn.
Across property development finance and investment property loans – STB’s main lending categories – there were several exceptional agreements approved throughout the year, including:
- A 340-unit PBSA (purpose-built student accommodation) new build in Edinburgh
- A £24m pre-let industrial development in East Anglia
- Two new build-to-rent schemes in Leicester and Nottingham
Spanning across its City of London and Reading offices, the team is headed up by Matthew-Blaine Young, STB’s head of origination. On its successes, Young said: “When we first set up our origination team, we had a simple goal, and that was to help developers and investors grow their businesses.
“2022 was a tricky year to navigate for many, owing to global events, political instability and interest rate rises. However, even through this, we have still delivered on our goals and helped to build new homes.
“This is all thanks to our fantastic team, not just in origination but across our Real Estate Finance division. Our unique approach to finance, where we take a holistic view of the projects and get to know the borrowers personally, means we’ve been able to secure deals for many different types of projects. Student accommodation, commercial and industrial property, and particularly, build-to-rent schemes, were just a few examples of the projects that we have provided loans for this year.”
Amidst a string of new deals and the onboarding of new customers, Young puts the first year’s accomplishments down to better collaboration and sharing of best practices across the team.
“When we shaped the team, we knew we wanted to slowly grow and be able to bring specialist skills from other members in to share knowledge. I’m very pleased we have been able to double our team’s headcount, but more importantly, every member has their own area of expertise. This means borrowers can be assured that when they come to us, more often than not we’ll be able to offer the specialist advice and the funding they need.”
