THE LEASING INDUSTRY BRIEFING
The latest news, views and numbers you need to know this month
News in Numbers
£1bn
UK fintech lender Allica Bank has reached £1bn in lending to mid-sized SMEs and hit its target of becoming profitable in 2022. The lender, which began operations in March 2020, has been profitable on a monthly basis since June 2022.
£125m
White Oak, a UK non-bank lender, said it has provided over £125m of funding to UK SMEs and mid-corporates during Q3, a record for the firm.
8%
The business equipment finance sector reported new business up in August 2022 by 8%, compared with the same month in 2021, according to FLA figures published in October.
79%
Almost 80% of SME owners in the UK feel that the current economic landscape is worse than the pandemic, new research from Bibby Financial Services (BFS) shows.
£13,000
The founder and chief commercial officer of Capitas Finance completed a gruelling five-day mountain bike cross country race through the Alps, raising over £13,000 for spinal cord research.
People Moves
Finativ to bolster sector expertise
UK-based finance and consulting services provider Finativ has appointed Jeff Longhurst as consulting director. In a statement, the consultancy said he brings more than four decades of experience in invoice finance, with more than 20 years of experience serving as CEO/managing director in large banks, foreign bank subsidiaries, specialist lenders and independents.
Source: Finativ
Acquis names Netherlands director
Acquis BV, a provider of insurance products and services to finance and leasing industry, has named Richard Briscoe as director of business development. He has also been named as the general manager of the company’s Netherlands office. In the new role, Briscoe will be responsible for the company’s sales in the Benelux and Nordic regions.
Source: Acquis
Dutch vendor finance company DLL names new human resources chief
DLL, an asset-based financial solutions provider, has appointed Iman Eddini as its new chief human resources officer (CHRO), effective immediately. Eddini, who has over 25 years of experience in human resources, has also been made a member of the company’s Executive Board. DLL, which is wholly owned subsidiary of Rabobank Group, manages portfolio of over €35bn.
Source: DLL
Paragon Bank bolsters SME lending broker team with new appointment
Paragon Bank has announced the appointment of Carole Luck as business development manager to strengthen its SME lending broker team. In the new role, Luck will manage the Southwest region and report to Paragon SME Lending head of broker Ian Galbraith. The lender hopes that the team will benefit from Luck’s experience as it works to build deeper relationships with its broker network and explore new opportunities.
Source: Paragon Bank
Time Finance expands asset finance unit
Time Finance has made a host of new appointments to beef up its asset finance team. In January 2022, the company named Steve Nichols as director of asset finance to supervise and head the unit. In July 2022, the company named Paul Seddon as head of credit. In addition, Time Finance hired two new broker managers, Matt Dean and Lauren Sharples, and elevated Laura Mollett as the head of its Broker Sales division.
Source: Time Finance
Societe Generale appoints CEO of equipment finance division
French financial services major Societe Generale has announced the appointment of Odile de Saivre as CEO of Societe Generale Equipment Finance (SGEF).
Odile de Saivre whose appointment will be effective from 1 September 2022, will report to Diony Lebot, deputy CEO of the group.
Odile de Saivre, who is also a member of the management committee, has been working as the deputy CEO of the equipment finance division since 2017.
In her new role, she will continue to support the growth of customers and vendor partners, while aiding them in becoming more sustainable by taking steps such as optimising life cycle management and promoting access to equipment and technologies that are more eco-friendly.
Odile de Saivre will be replacing Jochen Jehmlich, who has decided to retire after more than a 20-year stint with the company.
British Ports Association chief executive Richard Ballantyne, following UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s announcement that the Freeports selection process will see the first sites in England set up by the end of 2021:
“This is a welcome development and by being more inclusive in terms of the number of freeports there might be, the government can now explore how to better deliver on its levelling up agenda without picking regions over each other. Coastal communities are often in areas of high deprivation and have also experienced challenges resulting from the coronavirus pandemic and lockdown so this potentially transformative policy will be welcomed across a range of suitable locations.”