Shawbrook has expanded its corporate lending team with the appointment of Matt Fannon, who has joined the specialist bank as director as part of an effort to extend its presence in Leeds and its reach across Yorkshire and the North East.
Fannon has 20 years’ experience in banking and has spent the last 10 years at Allied Irish Bank (AIB), specialising in acquisition finance, leveraged finance and cash flow finance.
At Shawbrook, Fannon will focus on delivering the full corporate lending proposition, including asset-backed and leveraged finance solutions.
Fannon said: “Having established a great reputation in the corporate lending arena, Shawbrook has a big part to play in providing flexible funding packages and debt structures in what is a very buoyant market. These factors – along with the bank’s flexibility and appetite to lend – were key drivers that attracted me to Shawbrook.”
Mark Parsons, managing director for corporate lending (Midlands, North & Scotland) at Shawbrook, said: “During the first half of the year alone the corporate lending team completed 30 transactions, providing £125m of new facilities to high-quality UK businesses in a range of sectors including precision manufacturing, professional services, technology, wealth management, training and education.
“Across Yorkshire and the North East we’re working with great businesses like Hawthorn Timber, Glazerite and Carnaby Caravans. The advisor community in Leeds is particularly dynamic and very active right now, and with Matt’s experience and knowledge of the local market I’m looking forward to supporting many more businesses across the region.”
In December 2020, AIB announced its exit from the British SME market and would concentrate its efforts in corporate lending in niche areas such as renewable energy, manufacturing and warehousing. Hunt said the move formed part of AIB Group’s larger plan to cut a total of 1,900 roles between 2020 and 2023.
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