The platform — which was built by Enra’s in-house team for its West One brand — went live at the end of August and aims to enhance the origination journey with improved data capture, automated document production, and underwriting control. 

The system brings West One’s bridging loans onto the same platform as the lender’s development finance, BTL and second-charge lending, and is set to further enhance its ability to provide seamless service across its product range. 

“We looked at the technology available in the market for bridging loans, development finance, BTL, and second charge, and concluded that while systems exist for some of these products, there was nothing that offered the multi-product journey our customers demand, so we decided to build our own,” said Steve Hogg, chief operating officer at Enra (pictured above).

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“The launch of the new bridging system brings all of our products onto a common lending platform, and we intend to continue development to introduce more features and functionality over the coming months.” 

He added that West One’s ongoing investment in developing its own technology will make it easier for customers to access its products quickly, and to switch between them with “minimum friction”.

In August, Enra signed a £500m facility with JP Morgan to fund its bridging portfolio, after exclusively revealing to B&C that it is targeting £1bn of short-term lending this year.

In December 2020, West One revealed a brand refresh and opened its proposition to the whole market, including networks and clubs.