Facility will support product expansion plans as it targets £1 billion of annual lending
Specialist lender Glenhawk has agreed a £200 million senior funding line with NatWest Markets, which will support the company’s ambitions to lend £1 billion annually by 2024.
The lender said the new facility sits alongside its existing funding line with J.P. Morgan, and capitalises on NatWest’s experience in the high-growth UK bridging sector, which saw applications and completions rebound significantly in the second quarter of 2022, with bridging loan books reaching a record £6.1 billion.
Having doubled its live loan book size over the past 12 months, Glenhawk said it now has more flexibility to significantly increase its lending volumes. The facility will support both the expansion of its unregulated product range, which will have an increased focus on refurbishment and light development projects, larger loan sizes, commercial real estate, as well as an enhanced regulated offering.
Glenhawk has reported strong demand for its short-term lending products in 2022, in particular in the residential space, supported by a favourable market backdrop: an acute shortage of stock, a strong labour market and an ongoing focus on home ownership.
Capitalising on the ongoing market retrenchment by both more traditional and newer sources of financing, the lender achieved three consecutive months of record lending in May, June and July, and, following its launch in May, experienced a 300% increase in enquiries for its regulated product.
Read more: Glenhawk unveils regulated bridging range.
Daron Kularatnam, treasurer and ESG director at Glenhawk, said the market dislocation which resulted from the current macroeconomic volatility provides an attractive window for highly disciplined and well capitalised lenders.
“Furthermore, the fundamentals underpinning homeowner, commercial and mixed-use asset real estate remain particularly compelling,” Kularatnam stated. “The support of NatWest is a major endorsement of not only what Glenhawk has achieved to date, but also our future strategy, and provides stable funding to support our ambitious lending targets.
“NatWest’s support will enable us to accelerate the roll out of new products that meet growing investor demand. We are hugely excited to embark on this new growth phase and thrilled to be welcoming the NatWest team in as additional funding partners.”
Jennifer Wallaert, managing director at NatWest Markets, said they were delighted to work with Glenhawk’s team and support the company in its next phase of growth.
“This transaction demonstrates NatWest Markets’ expertise and capabilities in the UK specialist lending space and associated hedging,” Wallaert remarked. “Supporting UK businesses and ultimately providing a tailored innovative funding solution to an underserved part of the market is at the very heart of NatWest Markets purpose-led strategy.”
