Ortus Secured Finance, the London-based commercial lender, says it plans to double its commercial lending to UK leisure sector businesses within the next 12 months.
It also hopes to triple the size of its lending book in Northern Ireland – where its focus centres on commercial property needs – by the end of 2017.
Ortus Secured Finance specialises in lending to pubs, hotels, restaurants and nightclubs across the UK which require short-term finance. It provides asset backed loans to businesses looking to cover costs incurred through sudden spikes in demand or for bridging loans to provide interim capital while they re-finance.
The announcement follows the launch in February of Ortus Secured Finance’s new fund which provided the lender with an additional GBP40 million of funding. It also follows the issuing of over £50m-worth of Agreements in Principle in the first quarter of 2016.
Jon Salisbury, Managing Director of Ortus, says: “We are very positive about the progress we are making across the UK and optimistic about our growth over the coming months and years.”
“While banks are still treading carefully when it comes to SME lending, we have been focusing on building strong relationships with distributors and are excited about growing our lending book further as we expand.”
“There are still a very large number of businesses in a strong credit position looking for additional finance in our target markets.”
“Northern Ireland is becoming an increasingly important focus for us as an area where commercial lending is relatively scarce. Northern Ireland and Scotland are areas in which we feel we can really make a difference – due, in large part, to an existing lack in available funding.”
“This is a very exciting time for us – and for the businesses we work with.”
Investors in the fund include institutional investors, family offices and High Net Worths, from both the UK and overseas.
