UK private equity firm Maven Capital Partners (Maven) has strengthened its Midlands team with the appointment of senior investment specialists Chris Rogers, Richard Altoft and Graham Hall.
Based in Birmingham, Rogers has responsibility for new MEIF investments and will work closely with investee companies throughout Worcestershire. Rogers joins Maven after a 22-year career in commercial banking with RBS, as a Senior Relationship Manager, providing structural guidance and financial analysis to SMEs.
Working across Greater Lincolnshire, Altoft has joined Maven following a long career in banking, most recently as Corporate Manager at Handelsbanken, where he was responsible for building relationships with new-to-bank corporate clients and successfully managing a corporate portfolio of customers, consistently delivering strong growth.
Hall brings over 40 years’ extensive experience to with a proven track record of success having worked as a Senior Business Manager with Lloyds TSB and Business Adviser advising SMEs with turnovers up to GBP10m on best business practice and effective financial management. He will focus on the South East Midlands area, which includes Luton, Milton Keynes and Northamptonshire.
The increased recruitment drive across the Midlands represents the final round of appointments following Maven’s appointment to manage GBP90m MEIF debt funds, focused on providing debt funding to high-potential growth businesses located across both the West Midlands and the East and South East Midlands regions. Composed of two separate funds, GBP50m for SMEs located in the West Midlands, and GBP40 million for businesses in the East & South East Midlands, the Fund provides finance of between GBP100,000 and GBP1.5million.
Andrew Ferguson, Partner at Maven, says: “We are delighted to welcome Chris, Richard and Graham to the team to further strengthen our presence across the region. All three already have considerable in-depth knowledge of the local SME market, and a range of specialist knowledge allied to the national resource of Maven’s UK business. The Midlands has a well-deserved reputation as a centre for pioneering growth companies of tomorrow that help drive the UK economy. We are pleased to have expanded our MEIF debt fund team further and look forward to continuing our support for SMEs across the region to help them grow, access new markets and prosper.”
Commenting on the recruitment, Grant Peggie, Director, at the British Business Bank, says: “Our Fund Manager partners play a crucial part in the Midlands Engine Investment Fund’s commitment to regional business growth and work closely with SMEs throughout the finance application process and beyond, providing advice on how to use investment to scale effectively.
“By making additions to its team, Maven is not only reaffirming its commitment to the MEIF but increasing the amount of expertise available to the region’s SMEs. I look forward to seeing how these new team members contribute to ensuring that Midlands businesses can access the finance they need to facilitate their growth ambitions.”
The Midlands Engine Investment Fund project is supported financially by the European Union using funding from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020 and the European Investment Bank.
