Shawbrook celebrates milestone achievement: £1bn in speciality finance team
Shawbrook has announced a significant milestone as its speciality finance division surpasses £1bn in live facilities for the first time. This achievement demonstrates Shawbrook’s exceptional strength and presence in the market, solidifying its position as a key source of funding for the specialist lending space.
Shawbrook’s speciality finance division has successfully catered to non-bank lenders across three diverse sectors, namely consumer lending, SME loan specialists, and property finance providers. The company’s commitment to providing tailored financial solutions has garnered partnerships with prominent names, most recently supporting lenders such as Salad Money, MSP Capital, Zenzic Capital and Merchant Money among others.
Warren Mutch, head of speciality finance at Shawbrook said, “This milestone demonstrates the pivotal role Shawbrook plays in supporting non-bank lenders. There is a sense of optimism prevailing within the industry, with businesses remaining steadfast in their commitment to supporting their end markets, despite the challenging macro environment.”
Shawbrook’s tailored funding solutions are primarily facilitated through block discounting and revolving credit facilities, which enable lenders to serve their customer bases with the financial support they need and the surety of funding to deliver fast and efficient service.
Luke Jooste, CEO of Merchant Money said, “Shawbrook was our first port of call when we looked to set up our own funding line and they have been supportive throughout. Like many businesses, we had a few challenges due to Covid, but with their in-depth knowledge of the industry, the team there structured a solution that not only gave us an initial boost but also set us up on our journey.”
Shawbrook’s speciality finance team has also broadened its proposition to cater for the evolving needs in the market, introducing fund finance for niche and smaller funds in the UK and platform lending for non bank-lenders to release funds tied-up in loan receivables, via platform lending facilities. Further expanding its services, the team has been working with Responsible Finance to help more community development finance institutions provide funding to areas or communities who struggle to access mainstream products.
Phillip Hyett, finance director of Salad Money, said, “Access to affordable credit remains a challenge for many, with credit scores often unfairly holding people back. We are building an alternative to high-cost credit through our innovative use of Open Banking and machine learning in assessing affordability. Shawbrook has demonstrated real commitment to our business, providing an initial funding line and more recently, structuring an increased facility.”
As Shawbrook reaches this remarkable milestone, it reinforces its dedication to providing vital financial support to various sectors. The specialist bank remains committed to delivering exceptional services and products and contributing to economic prosperity.
Neil Rudge, head of enterprise at Shawbrook adds, “We recognise the value in supporting specialist lenders who at first glance may seem to be our competition. However, by supporting these entities, who typically operate in very niche markets, we are able to provide the strength of our balance sheet to help those businesses to grow, thereby increasing the support and funding available to businesses and consumers throughout the UK. These partnerships enable us to support lenders where their scale or geographical reach is better aligned to the end customers’ needs, but they don’t have access to the funding mix that Shawbrook does. In these cases, via our speciality finance team, we can support them indirectly through our strategic partnerships.”
