ThinCats extends credit team in the Midlands and North

Alternative finance specialist ThinCats is expanding further with the appointment of Rob Thompson to the newly-created role of regional head of credit for the North.

The move is part of ThinCats’ ambition to increase the volume and quality of loans it is originating, by providing strong regional support.

Rob’s role will accelerate the rate at which Thincats is able to structure and process loans, in the way that best addresses the needs of companies and investors alike.

Rob said:

“I’ll be working alongside our origination team to shape and structure the deals, helping resolve any problems and being actively involved in the whole credit process right the way through to completion.”

Rob is supporting Geoff O’Brien in Scotland, Maureen Armstrong in the North East and Matthew Lawrence and Mark Tunley in the Midlands, with a further new recruit to be announced to cover the North West from March.

Damon Walford, chief development officer at ThinCats, said:

“Business borrowers are frequently frustrated when they deal with ‘conventional’ lenders, in that the Relationship Managers they deal with appear to be like a post-box into which they drop their requirements, with the decisions being made by a far-off and faceless credit team.

“That isn’t the case with ThinCats; we act as a Team and ask the right questions at the outset. We make the whole process more efficient.”

Rob added:

“That’s what first attracted me to ThinCats – the fact that we have the knowledge and experience of a traditional lender but think smarter. We understand how a business works and listen to its financing needs, rather than using a remotely-executed tick-box approach that frustrates so many companies trying to raise finance. ThinCats analytics are first class and the data-mining exceptional.”

Rob will join originators in meetings with potential borrowers, particularly the larger or more complicated loans, to get a hands-on sense of the requirements.

Rob has worked in the banking sector since 1979. He has worked in commercial and corporate finance for Barclays, Co-op, Santander, and set up AIB Capital Markets corporate finance operation in the North.