Financier Andrew Ward has established a multi-million pound fund aimed at the SME market in the North of England.
Ward, well known in the North for having held senior positions with multiple financial providers (including Rothschild’s Five Arrows, an asset-based lending business, and Credit Agricole) before moving on to start Reward Capital and working with the private equity firm Endless.
This new venture, Reparo Finance, will provide fast turnaround loans between £50,000 and £500,000 and with repayment terms lasting from a matter of weeks to up to two years.
The intention is to help businesses in need of additional funding, particularly for restructuring, growth, refinance and transactions.
Reparo Finance has already garnered significant interest and has the backing of Ric Traynor, chairman of business recovery specialists Begbies Traynor.
Andrew Ward said:
“I was particularly keen to work with Ric as we have both seen the importance that strong funding can make to growing businesses, and the implications for those businesses denied funding.
“Over the last few years, SMEs have been under pressure to find alternative funding as traditional sources have dried up.
“We aim to provide funding to viable companies which cannot access the funding they require from traditional sources.
“Reparo Finance aims to be an ethical lender with a business model based on a transparent fee structure while offering the flexibility businesses need in terms of loan size, period and conditions.
“We are committed to fast response times and very high levels of client service with decisions made locally by the directors.”
Words: Peter Cribley