In brief

The first full quarter of 2021 saw a wide divergence between different European countries in terms of lease volumes, according to the Acquis Insurance index for the first quarter of 2021.

This was to be expected, as a third wave of the pandemic hit different regions at different times, Acquis said in a statement.

Q1 2021 saw a continued downward trajectory for most European countries in the survey, with France experiencing the largest comparative downturn and the UK somewhat brighter when compared to the previous quarter.

Guido Zoeller, group country head Germany & Austria of Societe Generale, has been appointed as the new chairman of the supervisory board of GEFA Bank GmbH. Guido Zoeller succeeds Didier Hauguel, who is leaving the supervisory board by rotation after 12 years of service as chairman.

Jochen Jehmlich, CEO at GEFA, said: “I would like to welcome Guido Zoeller, who has already been a member of our supervisory board since 2012. I am convinced that he will competently support us in all challenges of the coming years due to his excellent knowledge of the German market and our business segment.”

Shawbrook Group, the parent of specialist lender and asset finance provider Shawbrook Bank, has posted strong financial and operational performance for the three months to 31 March 2021.

The Group said it continued to invest in technology “to support its strategic objective of digitising and enhancing the customer proposition”.

The Bank’s loan book grew by 5.4% to £7.5bn and capital and liquidity ratios were significantly increased above regulatory requirements, the Group said.

BNP Paribas Leasing Solutions, a European equipment finance provider, has appointed Isabelle Loc as its chief executive.

She succeeds Charlotte Dennery, who becomes chief executive of BNP Paribas Personal Finance, after almost six years at the helm of the leasing division.

Isabelle Loc will report to Thierry Laborde, deputy CEO of the BNP Paribas Group and will be responsible for pursuing the growth and development of BNP Paribas Leasing Solutions and for outlining and implementing its next medium-term strategic plan (2022-2025).

Wesleyan Bank has achieved record results in its loan book for broker written business in the first quarter of 2021, surpassing the whole first year of trading when the specialist commercial lender’s broker division was established in 2019.

For January, February and March 2021, Wesleyan Bank’s broker division has supported SMEs with over £27m of asset lending across a broad range of sectors. These include transport and green energy, including funding the first electric ambulance in the UK.

Allica Bank has increased its maximum asset finance loan from £250,000 to £500,000. The appointed coincides with three business development managers being taken on to further drive its broker distribution channel, the bank said.

Arshad Miah joins Allica to manage its asset finance broker relationships in the Midlands and East Anglia regions. Ben Green will be focused on the West Midlands, while Allica’s new central business development manager, Sam Roberts, will be focused on building an active and engaged panel of brokers in the asset finance market.

Close Brothers Asset Finance and Leasing has announced the return of its Sales Academy, designed to attract new and diverse talent into the sector, the company said.

Now in its third iteration, the company is looking to recruit 10 new sales trainees across the UK who will specialise in one of several sectors, including Print, Construction and Transport.

Steve Gee, CEO of Close Brothers Asset Finance’s industrial equipment division, said: “We are keen to hear from driven, motivated and enthusiastic individuals with a passion to develop in sales.

The chief executive of Simply, Mike Randall, is to remain as chair for The Leasing Foundation for another 12 months, the UK-based non-profit group said.

The reappointment will run until the end of April 2022. Randall served as a director of the Foundation from 2016 before being appointed chair of the board in April 2020.

Randall said: “I’m delighted to have been reappointed chair of The Leasing Foundation and I’m looking forward to continuing the plans we set out last year."

AMAG Leasing AG, the largest B2B and B2C captive car leasing company in Switzerland, has improved its credit-granting process following its adoption of the FICO Platform, the company said in a statement.

AMAG, which has more than 150,000 leasing contracts under management, has automated large parts of its decision-making procedures through its FICO partnership, allowing it to handle 50 per cent more applications with the same workforce.

Martin Meyer, managing director at AMAG Leasing AG, said: “Our strategic goal was to increase the digitalisation and automation of our leasing process."

Total asset finance new business (primarily leasing and hire purchase) grew by 15% in March 2021 compared with the same month in 2020, according to the Finance & Leasing Association.

In Q1 2021, new business grew by 1% compared with Q1 2020. The commercial vehicle finance sector reported new business up in March by 22% compared with March 2020.

The business equipment finance and plant and machinery finance sectors reported new business up by 14% and 13% respectively, over the same period.