B&C Awards 2022: Winners revealed

Andreea Dulgheru | 12:00 Tuesday 20th September 2022 | 0

After a glamorous evening, we are excited to announce the winners of the 2022 Bridging & Commercial Awards.

This year’s event — in association with Precise Mortgages and InterBay — welcomed 770 guests to celebrate the best experts in the industry.

In total, 25 awards were announced as the bridging, commercial, development and alternative finance industries met to celebrate the success and growth of these sectors over the past 12 months.

Glenhawk took the coveted Bridging Lender of the Year award for the second year in a row, while its BDM Annaliese Melvin won Lender Relationship Manager of the Year.

“The team at Glenhawk has worked their socks off to achieve a second win in as many years, and I can’t express my gratitude enough for everything they do to continue our successful journey,” said Guy Harrington, founder of Glenhawk.

“The cherry on the cake was Annaliese winning too, and thoroughly deserved!

“Thank you as always to our partners, brokers, lawyers and investors.”

Annaliese added: “The evening was an amazing celebration of achievements for Glenhawk, toasting our second consecutive award as Bridging Lender of the Year, and I am totally flattered and humbled to be recognised individually too.

“It means the world to have such a supportive industry network, and this award has filled me with gratitude.”

MS Lending Group made waves as well, scooping up the Best Bridging Lender Newcomer and 2022 ESG awards.

“It’s an honour to be acknowledged by our industry peers for our work in the industry so soon after starting the business,” said Michael Stratton, CEO and founder of MS Lending Group.

“Bringing home two awards means the world to us and I’m really glad the whole team was there to celebrate their success last night as these awards are testament to their hard work and attitude when it comes to lending.

“I’m really proud of what we’re achieving at MS Lending Group — these awards, our recent funding line and our business levels all highlight this, and we’re also truly grateful to be recognised for the impact we’re trying to make in the ESG space.”

Clifton Private Finance also won two awards on the evening: Service Excellence — Brokers and Regulated Bridging Broker of the Year.

“To be recognised as the best regulated brokerage is something we are so proud of and something that has been a product of a lot of work in the background,” commented Sam O’Neill, head of bridging at Clifton Private Finance.

“Our graduate program ensuring a consistency of training to our advisers absolutely ensures everyone is singing off the same hymn sheet, while our internal calculators enable us to give accurate real-time quotes to our clients and weigh up costings from every lender in the market without having to liaise with any third-parties, making this a slick and smooth experience for our clients.

“To win these awards is really special for us and confirms that the company and brand we have built is greater than the sum of its parts.”

The competition was so tight, that the Best Specialist Distributor category had two winners for the first time in B&C Awards history — Brightstar and First 4 Bridging.

“We are delighted to have (jointly) won the award for Best Specialist Distributor at the 2022 B&C Awards,” said Myles Williams, CEO at Envelop (rebranded from First 4 Bridging).

“This would not have been possible without the contribution of every single person across the team, so I would like to thank them all for making this possible.

“This marks a truly symbolic achievement as it comes at a time when we say goodbye to the First 4 Bridging brand and move forward as Envelop in what will prove to be an exciting transition for the whole business.”

Winner of Service Excellence — Lenders was MT Finance.

“We are delighted to win this prestigious award; exceptional service has always been part of our DNA and to be recognised for the seventh time is a testament to the team at MT Finance,” noted Gareth Lewis, commercial director at MT Finance.

Meanwhile, Method won the accolade for Best Valuation Partner.

“Thank you to the whole Method team that have worked so hard to make this happen — from system development to every individual valuation instruction, so much hard work has gone into developing the business into something that we’re so proud of,” commented Stephen Henman, managing director at Method.

“I feel incredibly lucky to work alongside such a talented bunch, and the team deserves this recognition.

“It will take a few days for it to sink in, then we start thinking about how to retain it next year!”

This year’s Best Bridging Broker Newcomer award went to Propp.

“We’re over the moon! Everything we’ve achieved so far is a testament to the dedication of our brilliant team,” said Peter Williams, CEO at Propp.

“I want to thank our lending partners for recognising the hard work that has culminated in this win, and also for supporting our vision to drive the industry forward for the benefit of us all.’

On the development side, Avamore Capital won the Best Development Lender award, while Aureum Finance took home the Best Development Broker gong.

“We are incredibly proud to have won Best Development Lender at this year's B&C Awards, especially against some tough competition — it's a huge accolade to receive in a highly regarded category,” said Sabinder Robinson-Sandhu, head of operations and marketing at Avamore Capital.

“Avamore prides itself on being a development lender first and foremost — it's what our people are good at and what we love doing.

“We are always solution driven, customer focused and meticulous in our work and, by winning this prize, that has shone through.”

Laura Toke, bridging relationship director at SPF Short Term Finance — which won Best Bridging Broker — commented: “We would like to thank Caron [Schreuder, managing director], Beth [Fisher, publishing director], and the team at Medianett Publishing for their continued support and a spectacular night — the highlight of the bridging industry’s calendar.

“Given how competitive our industry is, SPF Short Term Finance was delighted to be nominated in five categories, winning Best Bridging Broker for the second year running.

“We were equally pleased to be highly commended for Best Regulated Bridging Broker, as these are the two strongest categories for brokers.

“This award is testament to the hard work and dedication of Amadeus and the rest of our talented team, and the quality and volume of business we write.

"We would also like to pass on our thanks to all our lenders who consistently support us, enabling us to deliver first-class funding solutions for our clients.”

Synergy Commercial Finance picked up the Best Commercial Broker gong.

“We are delighted to have won the Best Commercial Broker Award for the second year in a row,” said Piotr Twaits, managing director at Synergy Commercial Finance.

“We couldn’t have done it without the support from our incredible internal team, appointed representatives and lenders! Thank you to everyone at Bridging & Commercial for hosting another fabulous event.”

Hampshire Trust Bank also picked up Specialist BTL Lender of the Year, which Louisa Sedgwick, managing director of specialist mortgages, said was a testament to the bank’s staff.

“This recognition underlines the strength of our BTL proposition and the improvements we have made, such as the £25m maximum loan and the 50/50 semi-commercial product.”

This year’s winner of the Editor’s Choice Award went to Atelier.

“This award is a true team achievement, and a testament to the hard work, drive and expertise of everyone at Atelier,” commented Chris Gardner, joint CEO at Atelier.

“None of us could quite believe it when the award ceremony's host Beth Fisher read out our name. We’re both proud and determined to forge ahead with the things the judges recognised — our commitment to build lasting partnerships with developers and our mission to get more green homes built.”

In recognition of his extensive work within the specialist finance sector, UTB’s CEO Harley Kagan won this year’s Outstanding Contribution award.

"I was taken completely by surprise and I am honoured to receive such an award in front of so many of my peers and colleagues, who I would also describe as outstanding.

“My job is made much easier by the fantastic people I have the pleasure of working with at UTB.

“The last few years have been challenging for everyone, but by working together with creativity, tenacity and a strong sense of community, we have been able to overcome many obstacles, continue to deliver a great service to our broker partners and our borrowers and thrive as a UTB team.

“Although it's my name on the trophy, I accept this award on behalf of the whole UTB team as I have them to thank them for their consistent effort, dedication and contribution.

“Thank you as well to Mo and the amazing team at B&C for all they do for us as an industry."

The winners were chosen by two judging panels, who met earlier this year to decide who deserved the sought-after titles.

Keep scrolling to see photos of all of our fabulous winners!