B&C Awards 2024: Judges revealed

The two panels of industry experts — one formed of brokers, the other of lenders — have been chosen to select the winners for 24 of the 27 award categories ahead of the ceremony on Thursday, 6th June.

The chairpeople for the broker and lender panels will be announced in due course.

Voting for the longlist opened on 29th January and will close on 25th March.

Once online voting has closed, we create a longlist of up to 15 firms in each category, based on the number of online votes submitted.

Our judging panel will select up to eight in each category, and the collation of these results makes up the official shortlist, which will be announced on 2nd April.

On 16th May, both panels will convene to decide who will be crowned B&C Awards 2024 winners, with the groups determining the victors in two separate sessions.

The winners will be announced the following month, during the awards ceremony at the Hurlingham Club in Fulham, held in association with West One.

Who are the judges for the B&C Awards 2024?

Broker panel:

• Akhil Mair, managing director at Our Mortgage Broker
• Aaron Noone, director at Master Private Finance
• Amy Baptiste, head of specialist finance at LDN Finance
• James Lennon, director at Tapton Capital
• Joe Aston, sales and commercial director at Aria Finance
• Manoj Chitroda, commercial director at FinSpace Group
• Marc Champ, managing director at Wharf Financial
• Peter Williams, CEO at Propp
• Stephen Burns, partner at Word On The Street
• Tom Rowlands, sales director at Pure Property Finance
• Edward Horn-Smith, managing director at Arc & Co

Lender panel:

• James Bloom, director at Alternative Bridging Corporation
• Claire Newman, director of bridging at Spring Finance
• Ashley Ilsen, CEO at Magnet Capital
• Roz Cawood, managing director of property finance at StreamBank
• Ronak Ruparell, co-founder of Bridge Invest
• Jon Sturgess, sales development director at TAB
• Katy Katani, director at CapitalRise
• Kunal Mehta, owner and managing director at SDKA
• Mark Marlow, head of sales at Colenko
• Richard Deacon, managing director of sales at Octane Capital
• Tom Cantor, head of bridging at West One
• Charissa Chang, head of broker sales for commercial mortgages at Allica Bank
• Dan Narwal, intermediary relationship manager at Together
• Scott Lord, head of bridging underwriting at MFS
• Claire O’Brien, head of underwriting at Alternative Bridging Corporation

“The B&C Awards are the standout awards ceremony in our industry; when you are invited to be part of the judging panel, you accept with thanks,” said Richard.

“There are numerous very well-respected firms and individuals whom are nominated for an award, and to have a say in determining where the “Golden B” goes is a truly humbling experience.”

Tom Cantor said he was delighted to join the lender judging panel for this year’s awards ceremony.

“After another turbulent year in the market, it will be exciting to learn and also reward how different businesses have innovated and championed new strategies to succeed.”

Claire Newman added: “It is a great honour to have been selected to be a judge at this years’ B&C Awards. 

“Having attended the industry’s most eagerly anticipated event for many years and having received a number of awards myself, I am thrilled to be a part of the process in deciding who is best in their category this year. 

“I look forward to the judging day and the awards ceremony itself and wish everyone nominated the best of luck.”

Akhil also shared his enthusiasm for being selected as a judge: “It’s an exciting opportunity to contribute to the determination of worthy winners in each category.

“I can't wait to meet fellow judges, witness the industry's best in action, and collaborate closely with B&C. Let's celebrate excellence together!”